Methods and systems for sulfimidation or sulfoximidation of organic molecules

ABSTRACT

The disclosure generally relates to the fields of synthetic organic chemistry. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and systems for the imidation of sulfides.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/625,514, filed Feb. 18, 2015, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/941,197, filed Feb. 18, 2014 and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/976,927, filed Apr. 8, 2014, the disclosures of each of the foregoing application are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

This invention was made with government support under GM101792 awarded by the National Institutes of Health and under N00014-11-1-0205 awarded by the Office of Naval Research. The government has certain rights in the invention.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to the fields of synthetic organic chemistry. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and systems for the imidation of sulfides.

BACKGROUND

Enzymes offer appealing alternatives to traditional chemical catalysts due to their ability to function in aqueous media at ambient temperature and pressure. In addition, the ability of enzymes to orient substrate binding for defined regio- and stereo-chemical outcomes is highly valuable. This property is exemplified by the cytochrome P450 monooxygenase family of enzymes that catalyze insertion of oxygen atoms into unactivated C—H bonds (P. R. O. d. Montellano, Cytochrome P450: Structure, Mechanism and Biochemistry. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, ed. 3rd Edition, 2005).

Cytochrome P450s catalyze monooxygenation with high degrees of regio- and stereo-selectivity, a property that makes them attractive for use in chemical synthesis. This broad enzyme class is capable of oxygenating a wide variety of organic molecules including aromatic compounds, fatty acids, alkanes and alkenes. Diverse substrate selectivity is a hallmark of this enzyme family and is exemplified in the natural world by their importance in natural product oxidation as well as xenobiotic metabolism (F. P. Guengerich, Chem. Res. Toxicol. 14, 611 (2001)). Limitations to this enzyme class in synthesis include their large size, need for expensive reducing equivalents (e.g., NADPH) and cellular distribution—many cytochrome P450s are membrane bound and therefore difficult to handle (Montellano, Cytochrome P450: Structure, Mechanism and Biochemistry. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York, ed. 3rd Edition, 2005). Several soluble bacterial cytochrome P450s have been isolated, however, that show excellent properties and behavior for chemical synthesis and protein engineering applications.

SUMMARY

The disclosure provides method and compositions comprising one or more heme enzymes that catalyze the nitrene transfer or insertion into an organosulfur compounds comprising an —S— target site to form a new S—N bond. In particular embodiments, the disclosure provides heme enzyme variants comprising at least one or more amino acid mutations therein that catalyze sulfoxidation and/or sulfimidation, making products described herein with high stereoselectivity. In some embodiments, the heme enzyme variants of the disclosure have the ability to catalyze nitrene transfer reactions efficiently, display increased total turnover numbers, and/or demonstrate highly regio- and/or enantioselective product formation compared to the corresponding wild-type enzymes.

The disclosure provides a method for catalyzing the intermolecular insertion of nitrogen into thioethers, sulfur-organo compounds or sulfoxides to produce a product having a new S—N bond, the method comprising providing a nitrene source, a thioether or sulfoxide precursor and a heme enzyme or an engineered heme enzyme; and allowing the reaction to proceed for a time sufficient to form a product having a new S—N bond. In one embodiment, the nitrene source is an azide. In a further embodiment, the azide has the general formula R¹—N₃, wherein R¹ is (i) a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR², or —NR², wherein R² is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl; (ii) —SO₂R³, wherein R³ a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; (iii) —COR⁴ wherein R⁴ is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; or (iv) —P(O)(OR⁵)(OR⁶), wherein R⁵ and R⁶ are independently H, a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl. In a further embodiment, the azide has a structure selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl. In another embodiment, the nitrene source is selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl. In another embodiment, the S—N containing product is an aliphatic amine and the nitrene precursor is tosyl azide. In yet another embodiment, the product is generated through a nitrenoid intermediate. In still yet another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 enzyme or a variant thereof. In a further embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is expressed in a bacterial, archaeal or fungal host organism. In yet another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is a P450 BM3 enzyme or a variant thereof. In a further embodiment, the cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1 or a variant thereof. In yet other embodiments of the foregoing the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site. In a further embodiment, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with a member selected from the group consisting of Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, He, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr and Val at the axial position. In still a further embodiment, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with Asp or Ser at the axial position. In another embodiment of any of the foregoing, the P450 BM3 enzyme variant comprises at least one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or all thirteen of the following amino acid substitutions in SEQ ID NO: 1: V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G,T268A, A290V, L353V, 1366V, and E442K. In another embodiment of any of the foregoing the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In still another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T438S mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In yet another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation, a C400X mutation and a T438S mutation in SEQ ID NO:1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme comprises a fragment of the cytochrome P450 enzyme or variant thereof. In yet another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme variant selected from Table 4, Table 5 and Table 6. In yet another embodiment, the product is a compound of Formula 1a:

wherein R¹ is a sulfoxide, a carbonyl or a phosphonate; wherein R² is H or any alkyl or aryl; and wherein R³ is H, O or an optionally substituted aryl group. In a further embodiment, R¹ is a sulfoxide of formula SO₂R⁵, wherein R⁵ any alkyl, any aryl, —OR⁶ or NR⁷, wherein R⁶ and R⁷ are any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is H. In yet another embodiment of Formula 1a R¹ is a phosphonate of formula P(O)(OR⁸)(OR⁹), wherein R⁸ and R⁹ are independently any aryl or any alkyl. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or aryl. In yet another embodiment of Formula 1a, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment of Formula 1a, R³ is an optionally substituted aryl group. In a further embodiment, R¹ is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R² is H or any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment of Formula 1a, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R³ is O.

The disclosure also provides products made by any of the foregoing methods.

Also provided is a reaction mixture comprising a nitrene source, a thioether or sulfoxide substrate and an engineered heme enzyme for producing a product having a new S—N bond. In one embodiment, the nitrene source is an azide. In a further embodiment, the azide has the general formula R¹—N₃, wherein R¹ is (i) a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR², or —NR², wherein R² is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl; (ii) —SO₂R³, wherein R³ a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; (iii) —COR⁴ wherein R⁴ is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; or (iv) —P(O)(OR⁵)(OR⁶), wherein R⁵ and R⁶ are independently H, a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl. In a further embodiment, the azide has a structure selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl. In another embodiment, the nitrene source is selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl. In another embodiment, the S—N containing product is an aliphatic amine and the nitrene precursor is tosyl azide. In yet another embodiment, the product is generated through a nitrenoid intermediate. In still yet another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 enzyme or a variant thereof. In a further embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is expressed in a bacterial, archaeal or fungal host organism. In yet another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is a P450 BM3 enzyme or a variant thereof. In a further embodiment, the cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1 or a variant thereof. In yet other embodiments of the foregoing the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site. In a further embodiment, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with a member selected from the group consisting of Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, He, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr and Val at the axial position. In still a further embodiment, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with Asp or Ser at the axial position. In another embodiment of any of the foregoing, the P450 BM3 enzyme variant comprises at least one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or all thirteen of the following amino acid substitutions in SEQ ID NO: 1: V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G,T268A, A290V, L353V, 1366V, and E442K. In another embodiment of any of the foregoing the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In still another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T438S mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In yet another embodiment, the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation, a C400X mutation and a T438S mutation in SEQ ID NO:1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme comprises a fragment of the cytochrome P450 enzyme or variant thereof. In yet another embodiment, the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme variant selected from Table 4, Table 5 and Table 6. In yet another embodiment, the product is a compound of Formula 1a:

wherein R¹ is a sulfoxide, a carbonyl or a phosphonate; wherein R² is H or any alkyl or aryl; and wherein R³ is H, O or an optionally substituted aryl group. In a further embodiment, R¹ is a sulfoxide of formula SO₂R⁵, wherein R⁵ any alkyl, any aryl, —OR⁶ or NR⁷, wherein R⁶ and R⁷ are any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is H. In yet another embodiment of Formula 1a R¹ is a phosphonate of formula P(O)(OR⁸)(OR⁹), wherein R⁸ and R⁹ are independently any aryl or any alkyl. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or aryl. In yet another embodiment of Formula 1a, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment of Formula 1a, R³ is an optionally substituted aryl group. In a further embodiment, R¹ is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R² is H or any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment of Formula 1a, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In a further embodiment, R³ is O.

The disclosure demonstrates the intermolecular nitrene transfer catalyzed by an enzyme, allowing for a mechanistic analysis of this new enzyme activity. Similar to P450-catalyzed sulfoxidation, the electronic properties of the sulfide substrates influence reactivity, though the magnitude of the substituent effects is greater for nitrene transfer, possibly owing to the less oxidizing nature of the presumed nitrenoid intermediate.

The details of one or more embodiments of the disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one or more embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain the principles and implementations of the disclosure.

FIG. 1A-B shows P450-catalyzed sulfoxidation and P450-catalyzed sulfimination. (A) P450-catalyzed sulfoxidation, shown proceeding through compound I. This reaction can also be mediated by compound 0 (hydroperoxy intermediate). (B) P411-catalyzed sulfimination proceeding through a nitrenoid intermediate formed from the azide with N₂ as a byproduct. Subsequent oxidation of the sulfilimine can result in sulfoximine formation.

FIG. 2 shows a plot of reaction rate versus Hammett parameter of substituted aryl sulfides in reactions using P411-CIS enzyme and tosyl azide as nitrogen source. Data points are labeled with aryl substituent and position (p-=para, m-=meta).

FIG. 3 shows proposed mechanisms of sulfimide (“productive”) and sulfonamide (“unproductive”) formation.

FIG. 4 shows examples of azides tested as nitrene sources for sulfimidation of thioanisole using the P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S enzyme.

FIG. 5 shows examples of appropriate nitrene sources and generalized reactions for the formation of sulfilimines.

FIG. 6 shows examples of appropriate nitrene sources and generalized reactions for the formation of sulfoximines.

FIG. 7 shows data used to determine initial rates of the reaction depicted in scheme above the graph for the enzymes listed in figure legend.

FIG. 8A-D shows traces of (A) SFC trace of synthetic standard of 8a using Chiralpak OD-H column with 25% isopropanol/75% supercritical CO₂ mobile phase. (B) Trace of P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S produced 8a under same conditions as synthetic standard. (C) Trace of P411_(BM3)-H2-5-F10 produced 8a. (D) Trace of P411_(BM3)-CIS I263A T438S produced 8a, using 20% isopropanol/80% supercritical CO₂ mobile phase.

FIG. 9 shows: Top: SFC trace of 8b synthetic standard using Chiralpak OD-H column with 20% isopropanol/80% supercritical CO₂ mobile phase. Bottom: Trace of enzyme produced 8b.

FIG. 10 shows: Top: SFC trace of 8c synthetic standard using Chiralpak OJ column with 15% isopropanol/85% supercritical CO₂ mobile phase. Bottom: Trace of enzyme produced 8c.

FIG. 11 shows: Top: SFC trace of 8d synthetic standard using Chiralpak OJ column with 15% isopropanol/85% supercritical CO₂ mobile phase. Bottom: Trace of enzyme produced 8d.

FIG. 12 shows Data used to determine initial rates for reaction of substituted aryl sulfides with tosyl azide, using P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S as catalyst. Sulfimide products measured are as listed in Table 2.

FIG. 13 shows visible spectroscopy of Fe(III) and Fe(II)-P411_(BM3)CIS I263A T438S in the presence of NADPH, followed by azide addition.

FIG. 14 shows the monitoring the iron heme during the sulfimidation reaction with azide and sulfide. As shown in FIG. 13, the Soret peak for the Fe(III) state is obscured by NADPH. Therefore the Q-band region (enlarged box from 530-640 nm) was used to assess the transition from Fe(III) to Fe(II) as reaction proceeds.

FIG. 15 shows the ratio of sulfimide TTN to sulfonamide TTN as sulfide concentration is varied, using P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S enzyme, as shown in the scheme. Reactions were prepared with azide concentration held constant at 1 mM and sulfide concentration varied from 0.5 mM to 4 mM.

FIG. 16 shows TTN values measured for slow addition vs. adding substrates simultaneously, using P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S enzyme and the substrates shown in FIG. S10. Light gray bar shows TTN for sulfonamide, 9, dark gray shows TTN for the sulfimide, 8a.

FIG. 17 shows a standard curve for product 8a, shows in response factor as ratio of product area to internal standard area.

FIG. 18 shows the standard curve for product 8b.

FIG. 19 shows the standard curve for product 8c.

FIG. 20 shows the standard curve for product 8d.

FIG. 21 shows a demonstration of enzymatic production of 8a. Top: LC-MS 230 nm chromatogram of synthetic standard of 8a, confirmed by NMR. Middle: Enzyme reaction containing putative 8a. Bottom: Mixture of enzyme reaction and synthetic 8a, showing coelution.

FIG. 22 shows LC runs from FIG. 21 showing ESI-MS-(+) detection of total ion chromatogram (TIC) (major peak=324, corresponding to 8a M+H+).

FIG. 23 shows a demonstration of enzymatic production of 8b. Top: LC-MS 230 nm chromatogram of synthetic standard of 8b, confirmed by NMR. Middle: Enzyme reaction containing putative 8b. Bottom: Mixture of enzyme reaction and synthetic 8b, showing coelution.

FIG. 24 shows LC runs from FIG. 23 showing ESI-MS-(+) detection of selected ions (mass window 307.5-308.5).

FIG. 25 shows a demonstration of enzymatic production of 8c. Top: LC-MS 230 nm chromatogram of synthetic standard of 8c, confirmed by NMR. Middle: Enzyme reaction containing putative 8c. Bottom: Mixture of enzyme reaction and synthetic 8c, showing coelution.

FIG. 26 shows LC runs from FIG. 25 showing ESI-MS-(+) detection of selected ions (mass window 307.5-308.5).

FIG. 27 shows a demonstration of enzymatic production of 8d. Top: LC-MS 230 nm chromatogram of synthetic standard of 8d, confirmed by NMR. Middle: Enzyme reaction containing putative 8d. Bottom: Mixture of enzyme reaction and synthetic 8d, showing coelution.

FIG. 28 shows LC runs from FIG. 27 showing ESI-MS-(+) detection of total ion chromatogram (TIC) (major peak=294 m/z, corresponding to 8d M+H+).

FIG. 29 shows LC runs from reaction with P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S with substrate 7e showing ESIMS-(+) detection of selected ions (mass window 321.5-322.5 m/z), demonstrating production of 8e.

FIG. 30 shows a mass spectrum of peak identified in FIG. 29, showing M+H+ of product 8e.

FIG. 31 shows an LC-MS chromatrogram showing UV trace at 230 nm (top) and selected ions for 344 m/z, corresponding to the M+H+ mass of the product of azide 2 with sulfide 7a. Note TIC timescale differs due to instrument solvent delay.

FIG. 32 shows an LC-MS chromatrogram showing UV trace at 230 nm (top) and selected ions for 262 m/z, corresponding to the M+H+ mass of the product of azide 4 with sulfide 7a. Note TIC timescale differs due to instrument solvent delay.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “and,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a species” includes a plurality of such species and reference to “the enzyme” includes reference to one or more enzymes and equivalents thereof, and so forth.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. Although any methods and reagents similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice of the disclosed methods and compositions, the exemplary methods and materials are now described.

Also, the use of “or” means “and/or” unless stated otherwise. Similarly, “comprise,” “comprises,” “comprising” “include,” “includes,” and “including” are interchangeable and not intended to be limiting.

It is to be further understood that where descriptions of various embodiments use the term “comprising,” those skilled in the art would understand that in some specific instances, an embodiment can be alternatively described using language “consisting essentially of” or “consisting of.”

All publications mentioned herein are incorporated herein by reference in full for the purpose of describing and disclosing the methodologies, which are described in the publications, which might be used in connection with the description herein. The publications discussed above and throughout the text are provided solely for their disclosure prior to the filing date of the present application. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that the inventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue of prior disclosure.

Enzymes offer many advantages over traditional catalysts, such as selectivity, mild reaction conditions, convenient production, and use in whole cells. Cytochrome P450 enzymes are known to be able to carry out monooxygenations of diverse substrates, and exemplify the mild operating conditions that enzymes can afford. Many of the small molecule catalysts developed for C—H amination reaction have been designed in an effort to mimic these enzymes, but with the goal of activating nitrene equivalents rather than the oxene equivalents activated by cytochrome P450 enzymes (Bennett, R. D. & Heftmann, Phytochemistry 4, 873-879 (1965)). Cytochrome P450 enzymes bind to a cofactor comprising a catalytic transition metal (iron heme) that forms a reactive intermediate similar in electronic and steric features to metallonitrenoid intermediates used for synthetic C—N bond forming reactions.

The disclosure is based on the surprising discovery that engineered heme enzymes such as cytochrome P450BM3 enzymes, including a serine-heme-ligated P411 enzyme, efficiently catalyze nitrene insertion and transfer reactions. Suitable reactions include, but are not limited to, transfer of a nitrogen atom derived from an appropriate nitrene precursor to sulfur atoms with formation of an S—N bond. For example, in certain aspects, the present disclosure provides engineered heme enzymes such as cytochrome P450BM3 enzymes, including the serine-heme-ligated ‘P411’, which efficiently catalyze the sulfimidation of various organsulfur molecules. Significant enhancements in catalytic activity and enantioselectivity are observed in vivo, using intact bacterial cells expressing the engineered enzymes. The results presented here underscore the utility of enzymes in catalyzing new reaction types with the aid of synthetic reagents. The ability to genetically encode catalysts for formal nitrene transfers opens up new biosynthetic pathways to amines and expands the scope of transformations accessible to biocatalysis.

The term “S—N sulfimidation” includes a transfer of a nitrogen atom derived from an appropriate nitrene precursor to sulfur atoms with formation of an S—N bond, yielding a sulfimide.

The term “S—N sulfimidation (enzyme) catalyst” or “enzyme with S—N suflimidation activity” includes any and all chemical processes catalyzed by enzymes, by which substrates containing at least one carbon-sulfur bond can be converted into sulfimide products by using nitrene precursors such as sulfonyl azides, carbonyl azides, aryl azides, azidoformates, phosphoryl azides, azide phosphonates, iminoiodanes, or haloamine derivatives.

This disclosure describes enzyme catalysts based for the transfer of nitrogen atoms to aryl sulfides and other organosulfur compounds. This reaction is presumed to take place through a metal-nitrenoid intermediate, the reactivity of which is modulated by both the enzyme and substrates.

In some embodiments the organosulfur molecule has the structure of formula (I):

in which X═S atom is a target site for addition of a nitrogen, and R₁, R₂, and R₃ are independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, oxygen, aliphatic, aryl, substituted aliphatic, substituted aryl, heteroatom-containing aliphatic, heteroatom-containing aryl, substituted heteroatom-containing aliphatic, substituted heteroatom-containing aryl, alkoxy, aryloxy, and functional groups (FG) or are taken together to form a ring.

The term “aliphatic” is used in the conventional sense to refer to an open-chain or cyclic, linear or branched, saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group, including but not limited to alkyl group, alkenyl group and alkynyl groups. The term “heteroatom-containing aliphatic” as used herein refer to an aliphatic moiety where at least one carbon atom is replaced with a heteroatom.

The term “alkyl” and “alkyl group” as used herein refers to a linear, branched, or cyclic saturated hydrocarbon typically containing 1 to 24 carbon atoms, preferably 1 to 12 carbon atoms, such as methyl, ethyl, n-propyl, isopropyl, n-butyl, isobutyl, t-butyl, octyl, decyl and the like. The term “heteroatom-containing alkyl” as used herein refers to an alkyl moiety where at least one carbon atom is replaced with a heteroatom, e.g. oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorus, or silicon, and typically oxygen, nitrogen, or sulphur.

The term “alkenyl” and “alkenyl group” as used herein refers to a linear, branched, or cyclic hydrocarbon group of 2 to 24 carbon atoms, preferably of 2 to 12 carbon atoms, containing at least one double bond, such as ethenyl, n-propenyl, isopropenyl, n-butenyl, isobutenyl, octenyl, decenyl, and the like. The term “heteroatom-containing alkenyl” as used herein refer to an alkenyl moiety where at least one carbon atom is replaced with a heteroatom.

The term “alkynyl” and “alkynyl group” as used herein refers to a linear, branched, or cyclic hydrocarbon group of 2 to 24 carbon atoms, preferably of 2 to 12 carbon atoms, containing at least one triple bond, such as ethynyl, n-propynyl, and the like. The term “heteroatom-containing alkynyl” as used herein refer to an alkynyl moiety where at least one carbon atom is replaced with a heteroatom.

The term “aryl” and “aryl group” as used herein refers to an aromatic substituent containing a single aromatic or multiple aromatic rings that are fused together, directly linked, or indirectly linked (such as linked through a methylene or an ethylene moiety). Preferred aryl groups contain 5 to 24 carbon atoms, and particularly preferred aryl groups contain 5 to 14 carbon atoms. The term “heteroatom-containing aryl” as used herein refer to an aryl moiety where at least one carbon atom is replaced with a heteroatom.

The term “alkoxy” and “alkoxy group” as used herein refers to an aliphatic group or a heteroatom-containing aliphatic group bound through a single, terminal ether linkage. Preferred aryl alkoxy groups contain 1 to 24 carbon atoms, and particularly preferred alkoxy groups contain 1 to 14 carbon atoms.

The term “aryloxy” and “aryloxy group” as used herein refers to an aryl group or a heteroatom-containing aryl group bound through a single, terminal ether linkage. Preferred aryloxy groups contain 5 to 24 carbon atoms, and particularly preferred aryloxy groups contain 5 to 14 carbon atoms.

The terms “halo” and “halogen” are used in the conventional sense to refer to a fluoro, chloro, bromo or iodo substituent.

By “substituted” it is intended that in the alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, aryl, or other moiety, at least one hydrogen atom is replaced with one or more non-hydrogen atoms. Examples of such substituents include, without limitation: functional groups referred to herein as “FG”, such as alkoxy, aryloxy, alkyl, heteroatom-containing alkyl, alkenyl, heteroatom-containing alkenyl, alkynyl, heteroatom-containing alkynyl, aryl, heteroatom-containing aryl, alkoxy, heteroatom-containing alkoxy, aryloxy, heteroatom-containing aryloxy, halo, hydroxyl (—OH), sulfhydryl (—SH), substituted sulfhydryl, carbonyl (—CO—), thiocarbonyl, (—CS—), carboxy (—COOH), amino (—NH₂), substituted amino, nitro (—NO₂), nitroso (—NO), sulfo (—SO₂—OH), cyano (—C≡N), cyanato (—O—C≡N), thiocyanato (—S—C≡N), formyl (—CO—H), thioformyl (—CS—H), phosphono (—P(O)OH₂), substituted phosphono, and phospho (—PO₂).

In particular, the substituents R₁, R₂ and R₃ of formula I can be independently selected from hydrogen, C₁-C₂₄ alkyl, C₁-C₂₄ substituted alkyl, C₁-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing alkyl, C₁-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing alkyl, C₂-C₂₄ alkenyl, C₂-C₂₄ substituted alkenyl, C₂-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing alkenyl, C₂-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing alkenyl, C₅-C₂₄ aryl, C₅-C₂₄ substituted aryl, C₅-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing aryl, C₅-C₂₄ substituted heteroatom-containing aryl, C₁-C₂₄ alkoxy, C₅-C₂₄ aryloxy, carbonyl, thiocarbonyl, and carboxy. More in particular, R₁, R₂ and R₃ of formula I can be independently selected from hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl, C₁-C₁₂ substituted alkyl, C₁-C₁₂ substituted heteroatom-containing alkyl, C₁-C₁₂ substituted heteroatom-containing alkyl, C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₂-C₁₂ substituted alkenyl, C₂-C₁₂ substituted heteroatom-containing alkenyl, C₂-C₁₂ substituted heteroatom-containing alkenyl, C₅-C₁₄ aryl, C₅-C₁₄ substituted aryl, C₅-C₁₄ substituted heteroatom-containing aryl, C₅-C₁₄ substituted heteroatom-containing aryl, C₂-C₁₄ alkoxy, C₅-C₁₄ aryloxy, carbonyl, thiocarbonyl, and carboxy.

As used herein, the term “alkylthio” refers to an alkyl group having a sulfur atom that connects the alkyl group to the point of attachment: i.e., alkyl-S—. As for alkyl groups, alkylthio groups can have any suitable number of carbon atoms, such as C₁₋₆ or C₁₋₄. Alkylthio groups include, for example, methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, iso-propoxy, butoxy, 2-butoxy, iso-butoxy, sec-butoxy, tert-butoxy, pentoxy, hexoxy, etc. Alkylthio groups can be optionally substituted with one or more moieties selected from halo, hydroxy, amino, alkylamino, alkoxy, haloalkyl, carboxy, amido, nitro, oxo, and cyano. Thioethers have the generals structure R—S—R, wherein R is any alkyl, alkynyl, alkenyl, aryl (substituted or unsubstituted).

As used herein, the term “haloalkyl” refers to an alkyl moiety as defined above substituted with at least one halogen atom.

As used herein, the term “acyl” refers to a moiety —C(O)R, wherein R is an alkyl group.

As used herein, the term “oxo” refers to an oxygen atom that is double-bonded to a compound (i.e., O═).

As used herein, the term “carboxy” refers to a moiety —C(O)OH. The carboxy moiety can be ionized to form the carboxylate anion.

As used herein, the term “amino” refers to a moiety —NR³, wherein each R group is H or alkyl.

As used herein, the term “amido” refers to a moiety —NRC(O)R or —C(O)NR², wherein each R group is H or alkyl.

The terms “engineered heme enzyme” and “heme enzyme variant” include any heme-containing enzyme comprising at least one amino acid mutation with respect to wild-type and also include any chimeric protein comprising recombined sequences or blocks of amino acids from two, three, or more different heme-containing enzymes that will improve its S—N sulfimidation activity or other reactions disclosed herein.

The terms “engineered cytochrome P450” and “cytochrome P450 variant” include any cytochrome P450 enzyme comprising at least one amino acid mutation with respect to wild-type and also include any chimeric protein comprising recombined sequences or blocks of amino acids from two, three, or more different cytochrome P450 enzymes.

As used herein, the term “whole cell catalyst” includes microbial cells expressing heme containing enzymes, engineered cytochrome P450, or a cytochrome P450 variant, where the whole cell displays sulfimidation activity or sulfoximdation activity.

As used herein, the term “nitrene equivalent” or “nitrene precursor” includes molecules that can be decomposed in the presence of metal (or enzyme) catalysts to structures that contain at least one monovalent nitrogen atom with only 6 valence shell electrons and that can be transferred to a sulfur to form sulfilimines or sulfoximines.

As used herein, the terms “microbial,” “microbial organism” and “microorganism” include any organism that exists as a microscopic cell that is included within the domains of archaea, bacteria or eukarya. Therefore, the term is intended to encompass prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells or organisms having a microscopic size and includes bacteria, archaea and eubacteria of all species as well as eukaryotic microorganisms such as yeast and fungi. Also included are cell cultures of any species that can be cultured for the production of a chemical.

As used herein, the term “non-naturally occurring,” when used in reference to a microbial organism or enzyme activity of the disclosure, is intended to mean that the microbial organism or enzyme has at least one genetic alteration not normally found in a naturally occurring strain of the referenced species, including wild-type strains of the referenced species. Genetic alterations include, for example, modifications introducing expressible nucleic acids encoding metabolic polypeptides, other nucleic acid additions, nucleic acid deletions and/or other functional disruption of the microbial organism's genetic material. Such modifications include, for example, coding regions and functional fragments thereof, for heterologous, homologous or both heterologous and homologous polypeptides for the referenced species. Additional modifications include, for example, non-coding regulatory regions in which the modifications alter expression of a gene or operon.

As used herein, the term “anaerobic”, when used in reference to a reaction, culture or growth condition, is intended to mean that the concentration of oxygen is less than about 25 μM, typically less than about 5 μM, and commonly less than 1 μM. The term is also intended to include sealed chambers of liquid or solid medium maintained with an atmosphere of less than about 1% oxygen. Typically, anaerobic conditions are achieved by sparging a reaction mixture with an inert gas such as nitrogen or argon.

As used herein, the term “exogenous” is intended to mean that the referenced molecule or the referenced activity is introduced into the host microbial organism. The term as it is used in reference to expression of an encoding nucleic acid refers to the introduction of the encoding nucleic acid in an expressible form into the microbial organism using recombinant DNA techniques. When used in reference to a biosynthetic activity, the term refers to an activity that is introduced into the host reference organism.

The term “heterologous” as used herein with reference to molecules, and in particular enzymes and polynucleotides, indicates molecules that are expressed in an organism other than the organism from which they originated or are found in nature, independently of the level of expression that can be lower, equal or higher than the level of expression of the molecule in the native microorganism.

On the other hand, the term “native” or “endogenous” as used herein with reference to molecules, and in particular enzymes and polynucleotides, indicates molecules that are expressed in the organism in which they originated or are found in nature, independently of the level of expression that can be lower equal or higher than the level of expression of the molecule in the native microorganism. It is understood that expression of native enzymes or polynucleotides may be modified in recombinant microorganisms.

The term “homolog,” as used herein with respect to an original enzyme or gene of a first family or species, refers to distinct enzymes or genes of a second family or species which are determined by functional, structural and/or genomic analyses to be an enzyme or gene of the second family or species which corresponds to the original enzyme or gene of the first family or species. Homologs most often have functional, structural, or genomic similarities. Techniques are known by which homologs of an enzyme or gene can readily be cloned using genetic probes and PCR. Identity of cloned sequences as homolog can be confirmed using functional assays and/or by genomic mapping of the genes.

A protein has “homology” or is “homologous” to a second protein if the amino acid sequence encoded by a gene has a similar amino acid sequence to that of the second gene. Alternatively, a protein has homology to a second protein if the two proteins have “similar” amino acid sequences. Thus, the term “homologous proteins” is intended to mean that the two proteins have similar amino acid sequences. In particular embodiments, the homology between two proteins is indicative of its shared ancestry, related by evolution.

The terms “analog” and “analogous” include nucleic acid or protein sequences or protein structures that are related to one another in function only and are not from common descent or do not share a common ancestral sequence. Analogs may differ in sequence but may share a similar structure, due to convergent evolution. For example, two enzymes are analogs or analogous if the enzymes catalyze the same reaction of conversion of a substrate to a product, are unrelated in sequence, and irrespective of whether the two enzymes are related in structure.

The term “contact” as used herein with reference to interactions of chemical units indicates that the chemical units are at a distance that allows short range non-covalent interactions (such as Van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, electrostatic interactions, dipole-dipole interactions) to dominate the interaction of the chemical units. For example, when an oxygenase enzyme is ‘contacted’ with a target molecule, the enzyme is allowed to interact with and bind to the organic molecule through non-covalent interactions so that a reaction between the enzyme and the target molecule can occur.

The term “introducing” as used herein with reference to the interaction between two chemical units, such as a functional groups and a target site, indicates a reaction resulting in the formation of a bond between the two chemical units, e.g. the functional group and the target site.

The disclosure provides an enzymatic process for the suflimidation or sulfoximidation of a atarget sulfur atom b a nitrene precursor. The methods and compositions of the disclosure includes a heme enzyme (e.g., an engineered P450BM3 of variant) an nitrene precursor (e.g., an azide or other compound that comprises a nitrogen atom that can be used as a nitrene) and a target organosulfur compound, wherein the compound comprises a sulfur atom that is linked to a nitrogen to form a new N-C bond using the enzymatic process of the disclosure.

In some embodiments, the enzyme is a heme-containing enzyme or a variant thereof. The wording “heme” or “heme domain” as used herein refers to an amino acid sequence within an enzyme, which is capable of binding an iron-complexing structure such as a porphyrin. Compounds of iron are typically complexed in a porphyrin (tetrapyrrole) ring that may differ in side chain composition. Heme groups can be the prosthetic groups of cytochromes and are found in most oxygen carrier proteins. Exemplary heme domains include that of P450_(BM3) as well as truncated or mutated versions of these that retain the capability to bind the iron-complexing structure. A skilled person can identify the heme domain of a specific protein using methods known in the art.

The terms “heme enzyme” and “heme protein” are used herein to include any member of a group of proteins containing heme as a prosthetic group. Non-limiting examples of heme enzymes include globins, cytochromes, oxidoreductases, any other protein containing a heme as a prosthetic group, and combinations thereof. Heme-containing globins include, but are not limited to, hemoglobin, myoglobin, and combinations thereof. Heme-containing cytochromes include, but are not limited to, cytochrome P450, cytochrome b, cytochrome cl, cytochrome c, and combinations thereof. Heme-containing oxidoreductases include, but are not limited to, a catalase, an oxidase, an oxygenase, a haloperoxidase, a peroxidase, and combinations thereof.

In certain instances, the heme enzymes are metal-substituted heme enzymes containing protoporphyrin IX or other porphyrin molecules containing metals other than iron, including, but not limited to, cobalt, rhodium, copper, ruthenium, and manganese, which are active sulfimidation or sulfoximidation catalysts.

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme is a member of one of the enzyme classes set forth in Table 1. In other embodiments, the heme enzyme is a variant or homolog of a member of one of the enzyme classes set forth in Table 1. In yet other embodiments, the heme enzyme comprises or consists of the heme domain of a member of one of the enzyme classes set forth in Table 1 or a fragment thereof (e.g., a truncated heme domain) that is capable of carrying out the nitrene insertion and nitrene transfer reactions described herein.

TABLE 1 Heme enzymes identified by their enzyme classification number (EC number) and classification name. EC Number Name 1.1.2.3 L-lactate dehydrogenase 1.1.2.6 polyvinyl alcohol dehydrogenase (cytochrome) 1.1.2.7 methanol dehydrogenase (cytochrome c) 1.1.5.5 alcohol dehydrogenase (quinone) 1.1.5.6 formate dehydrogenase-N: 1.1.9.1 alcohol dehydrogenase (azurin): 1.1.99.3 gluconate 2-dehydrogenase (acceptor) 1.1.99.11 fructose 5-dehydrogenase 1.1.99.18 cellobiose dehydrogenase (acceptor) 1.1.99.20 alkan-1-ol dehydrogenase (acceptor) 1.2.1.70 glutamyl-tRNA reductase 1.2.3.7 indole-3-acetaldehyde oxidase 1.2.99.3 aldehyde dehydrogenase (pyrroloquinoline-quinone) 1.3.1.6 fumarate reductase (NADH): 1.3.5.1 succinate dehydrogenase (ubiquinone) 1.3.5.4 fumarate reductase (menaquinone) 1.3.99.1 succinate dehydrogenase 1.4.9.1 methylamine dehydrogenase (amicyanin) 1.4.9.2. aralkylamine dehydrogenase (azurin) 1.5.1.20 methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase [NAD(P)H] 1.5.99.6 spermidine dehydrogenase 1.6.3.1 NAD(P)H oxidase 1.7.1.1 nitrate reductase (NADH) 1.7.1.2 Nitrate reductase [NAD(P)H] 1.7.1.3 nitrate reductase (NADPH) 1.7.1.4 nitrite reductase [NAD(P)H] 1.7.1.14 nitric oxide reductase [NAD(P), nitrous oxide-forming] 1.7.2.1 nitrite reductase (NO-forming) 1.7.2.2 nitrite reductase (cytochrome; ammonia-forming) 1.7.2.3 trimethylamine-N-oxide reductase (cytochrome c) 1.7.2.5 nitric oxide reductase (cytochrome c) 1.7.2.6 hydroxylamine dehydrogenase 1.7.3.6 hydroxylamine oxidase (cytochrome) 1.7.5.1 nitrate reductase (quinone) 1.7.5.2 nitric oxide reductase (menaquinol) 1.7.6.1 nitrite dismutase 1.7.7.1 ferredoxin-nitrite reductase 1.7.7.2 ferredoxin-nitrate reductase 1.7.99.4 nitrate reductase 1.7.99.8 hydrazine oxidoreductase 1.8.1.2 sulfite reductase (NADPH) 1.8.2.1 sulfite dehydrogenase 1.8.2.2 thiosulfate dehydrogenase 1.8.2.3 sulfide-cytochrome-c reductase (flavocytochrome c) 1.8.2.4 dimethyl sulfide:cytochrome c2 reductase 1.8.3.1 sulfite oxidase 1.8.7.1 sulfite reductase (ferredoxin) 1.8.98.1 CoB-CoM heterodisulfide reductase 1.8.99.1 sulfite reductase 1.8.99.2 adenylyl-sulfate reductase 1.8.99.3 hydrogensulfite reductase 1.9.3.1 cytochrome-c oxidase 1.9.6.1 nitrate reductase (cytochrome) 1.10.2.2 ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase 1.10.3.1 catechol oxidase 1.10.3.B1 caldariellaquinol oxidase (H+-transporting) 1.10.3.3 L-ascorbate oxidase 1.10.3.9 photosystem II 1.10.3.10 ubiquinol oxidase (H+-transporting) 1.10.3.11 ubiquinol oxidase 1.10.3.12 menaquinol oxidase (H+-transporting) 1.10.9.1 plastoquinol-plastocyanin reductase 1.11.1.5 cytochrome-c peroxidase 1.11.1.6 catalase 1.11.1.7 peroxidase 1.11.1.B2 chloride peroxidase (vanadium-containing) 1.11.1.B7 bromide peroxidase (heme-containing) 1.11.1.8 iodide peroxidase 1.11.1.10 chloride peroxidase 1.11.1.11 L-ascorbate peroxidase 1.11.1.13 manganese peroxidase 1.11.1.14 lignin peroxidase 1.11.1.16 versatile peroxidase 1.11.1.19 dye decolorizing peroxidase 1.11.1.21 catalase-peroxidase 1.11.2.1 unspecific peroxygenase 1.11.2.2 myeloperoxidase 1.11.2.3 plant seed peroxygenase 1.11.2.4 fatty-acid peroxygenase 1.12.2.1 cytochrome-c3 hydrogenase 1.12.5.1 hydrogen:quinone oxidoreductase 1.12.99.6 hydrogenase (acceptor) 1.13.11.9 2,5-dihydroxypyridine 5,6-dioxygenase 1.13.11.11 tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase 1.13.11.49 chlorite O2-lyase 1.13.11.50 acetylacetone-cleaving enzyme 1.13.11.52 indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1.13.11.60 linoleate 8R-lipoxygenase 1.13.99.3 tryptophan 2′-dioxygenase 1.14.11.9 flavanone 3-dioxygenase 1.14.12.17 nitric oxide dioxygenase 1.14.13.39 nitric-oxide synthase (NADPH dependent) 1.14.13.17 cholesterol 7alpha-monooxygenase 1.14.13.41 tyrosine N-monooxygenase 1.14.13.70 sterol 14alpha-demethylase 1.14.13.71 N-methylcoclaurine 3′-monooxygenase 1.14.13.81 magnesium-protoporphyrin IX monomethyl ester (oxidative) cyclase 1.14.13.86 2-hydroxyisoflavanone synthase 1.14.13.98 cholesterol 24-hydroxylase 1.14.13.119 5-epiaristolochene 1,3-dihydroxylase 1.14.13.126 vitamin D3 24-hydroxylase 1.14.13.129 beta-carotene 3-hydroxylase 1.14.13.141 cholest-4-en-3-one 26-monooxygenase 1.14.13.142 3-ketosteroid 9alpha-monooxygenase 1.14.13.151 linalool 8-monooxygenase 1.14.13.156 1,8-cineole 2-endo-monooxygenase 1.14.13.159 vitamin D 25-hydroxylase 1.14.14.1 unspecific monooxygenase 1.14.15.1 camphor 5-monooxygenase 1.14.15.6 cholesterol monooxygenase (side-chain-cleaving) 1.14.15.8 steroid 15beta-monooxygenase 1.14.15.9 spheroidene monooxygenase 1.14.18.1 tyrosinase 1.14.19.1 stearoyl-CoA 9-desaturase 1.14.19.3 linoleoyl-CoA desaturase 1.14.21.7 biflaviolin synthase 1.14.99.1 prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 1.14.99.3 heme oxygenase 1.14.99.9 steroid 17alpha-monooxygenase 1.14.99.10 steroid 21-monooxygenase 1.14.99.15 4-methoxybenzoate monooxygenase (O-demethylating) 1.14.99.45 carotene epsilon-monooxygenase 1.16.5.1 ascorbate ferrireductase (transmembrane) 1.16.9.1 iron:rusticyanin reductase 1.17.1.4 xanthine dehydrogenase 1.17.2.2 lupanine 17-hydroxylase (cytochrome c) 1.17.99.1 4-methylphenol dehydrogenase (hydroxylating) 1.17.99.2 ethylbenzene hydroxylase 1.97.1.1 chlorate reductase 1.97.1.9 selenate reductase 2.7.7.65 diguanylate cyclase 2.7.13.3 histidine kinase 3.1.4.52 cyclic-guanylate-specific phosphodiesterase 4.2.1.B9 colneleic acid/etheroleic acid synthase 4.2.1.22 Cystathionine beta-synthase 4.2.1.92 hydroperoxide dehydratase 4.2.1.212 colneleate synthase 4.3.1.26 chromopyrrolate synthase 4.6.1.2 guanylate cyclase 4.99.1.3 sirohydrochlorin cobaltochelatase 4.99.1.5 aliphatic aldoxime dehydratase 4.99.1.7 phenylacetaldoxime dehydratase 5.3.99.3 prostaglandin-E synthase 5.3.99.4 prostaglandin-I synthase 5.3.99.5 Thromboxane-A synthase 5.4.4.5 9,12-octadecadienoate 8-hydroperoxide 8R-isomerase 5.4.4.6 9,12-octadecadienoate 8-hydroperoxide 8S-isomerase 6.6.1.2 cobaltochelatase

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme is a variant or a fragment thereof (e.g., a truncated variant containing the heme domain) comprising at least one mutation such as, e.g., a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site. In some instances, the mutation is a substitution of the native residue with Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Cys, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, Ile, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr, or Val at the axial position. In certain instances, the mutation is a substitution of Cys with any other amino acid such as Ser at the axial position.

In certain embodiments, the in vitro methods for producing a product described herein comprise providing a heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof with a reducing agent such as NADPH or a dithionite salt (e.g., Na₂S₂O₄). In certain other embodiments, the in vivo methods for producing a reaction product provided herein comprise providing whole cells such as E. coli cells expressing a heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof.

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof is recombinantly expressed and optionally isolated and/or purified for carrying out the in vitro sulfimidation or sulfoximidation reactions of the disclosure. In other embodiments, the heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof is expressed in whole cells such as E. coli cells, and these cells are used for carrying out the in vivo nitrene insertion activity and/or nitrene transfer activity of the disclosure.

In certain embodiments, the heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof comprises or consists of the same number of amino acid residues as the wild-type enzyme (i.e., a full-length polypeptide). In some instances, the heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof comprises or consists of an amino acid sequence without the start methionine (e.g., P450BM3 amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO:1). In other embodiments, the heme enzyme comprises or consists of a heme domain fused to a reductase domain. In yet other embodiments, the heme enzyme does not contain a reductase domain, e.g., the heme enzyme contains a heme domain only or a fragment thereof such as a truncated heme domain.

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme, variant, or homolog thereof has an enhanced nitrene insertion activity and/or nitrene transfer activity of about 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, or 100 fold compared to the corresponding wild-type heme enzyme.

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme comprises a heme domain fused to a reductase domain. In other embodiments, the heme enzyme does not comprise a reductase domain, e.g., a heme domain only or a fragment thereof.

In one embodiment, the disclosure provides a method for catalyzing a nitrene insertion into a —S— bond to produce a product having a new S—N bond. The method comprises the steps of: providing a —S— containing substrate, a nitene precursor and an engineered heme enzyme; and allowing the reaction to proceed for a time sufficient to form a product having a new S—N bond.

In particular embodiments, the heme enzyme comprises a cyctochrome P450 enzyme. Cytochrome P450 enzymes constitute a large superfamily of heme-thiolate proteins involved in the metabolism of a wide variety of both exogenous and endogenous compounds. Usually, they act as the terminal oxidase in multicomponent electron transfer chains, such as P450-containing monooxygenase systems. Members of the cytochrome P450 enzyme family catalyze myriad oxidative transformations, including, e.g., hydroxylation, epoxidation, oxidative ring coupling, heteratom release, and heteroatom oxygenation (E. M. Isin et al., Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1770, 314 (2007)). The active site of these enzymes contains a Fe^(III)-protoporphyrin IX cofactor (heme) ligated proximally by a conserved cysteine thiolate (M. T. Green, Current Opinion in Chemical Biology 13, 84 (2009)). The remaining axial iron coordination site is occupied by a water molecule in the resting enzyme, but during native catalysis, this site is capable of binding molecular oxygen. In the presence of an electron source, typically provided by NADH or NADPH from an adjacent fused reductase domain or an accessory cytochrome P450 reductase enzyme, the heme center of cytochrome P450 activates molecular oxygen, generating a high valent iron(IV)-oxo porphyrin cation radical species intermediate and a molecule of water.

In some embodiments, the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 enzyme or a variant thereof. In certain embodiments, the P450 enzyme is a member of one of the classes shown in Table 2 (see, e.g., http[://www].icegeb.org/˜p450srv/P450enzymes.html), the disclosure of which is incoproated herein by reference in its entirety.

TABLE 2 Heme enzymes identified by their enzyme classification number (EC number) and classification name. EC Recommended name Family/gene 1.3.3.9 secologanin synthase CYP72A1 1.14.13.11 trans-cinnamate 4-monooxygenase CYP73 1.14.13.12 benzoate 4-monooxygenase CYP53 1.14.13.13 calcidiol 1-monooxygenase CYP27 1.14.13.15 cholestanetriol 26-monooxygenase CYP27 1.14.13.17 cholesterol 7α-monooxygenase CYP7 1.14.13.21 flavonoid 3′-monooxygenase CYP75 1.14.13.28 3,9-dihydroxypterocarpan 6a- CYP93A1 monooxygenase 1.14.13.30 leukotriene-B₄ 20-monooxygenase CYP4F 1.14.13.37 methyltetrahydroprotoberberine 14- CYP93A1 monooxygenase 1.14.13.41 tyrosine N-monooxygenase CYP79 1.14.13.42 hydroxyphenylacetonitrile 2- — monooxygenase 1.14.13.47 (−)-limonene 3-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.48 (−)-limonene 6-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.49 (−)-limonene 7-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.52 isoflavone 3′-hydroxylase — 1.14.13.53 isoflavone 2′-hydroxylase — 1.14.13.55 protopine 6-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.56 dihydrosanguinarine 10-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.57 dihydrochelirubine 12-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.60 27-hydroxycholesterol 7α-monooxygenase — 1.14.13.70 sterol 14-demethylase CYP51 1.14.13.71 N-methylcoclaurine 3′-monooxygenase CYP80B1 1.14.13.73 tabersonine 16-hydroxylase CYP71D12 1.14.13.74 7-deoxyloganin 7-hydroxylase — 1.14.13.75 vinorine hydroxylase — 1.14.13.76 taxane 10β-hydroxylase CYP725A1 1.14.13.77 taxane 13α-hydroxylase CYP725A2 1.14.13.78 ent-kaurene oxidase CYP701 1.14.13.79 ent-kaurenoic acid oxidase CYP88A 1.14.14.1 unspecific monooxygenase multiple 1.14.15.1 camphor 5-monooxygenase CYP101 1.14.15.3 alkane 1-monooxygenase CYP4A 1.14.15.4 steroid 11β-monooxygenase CYP11B 1.14.15.5 corticosterone 18-monooxygenase CYP11B 1.14.15.6 cholesterol monooxygenase (side-chain- CYP11A cleaving) 1.14.21.1 (S)-stylopine synthase — 1.14.21.2 (S)-cheilanthifoline synthase — 1.14.21.3 berbamunine synthase CYP80 1.14.21.4 salutaridine synthase — 1.14.21.5 (S)-canadine synthase — 1.14.99.9 steroid 17α-monooxygenase CYP17 1.14.99.10 steroid 21-monooxygenase CYP21 1.14.99.22 ecdysone 20-monooxygenase — 1.14.99.28 linalool 8-monooxygenase CYP111 4.2.1.92 hydroperoxide dehydratase CYP74 5.3.99.4 prostaglandin-I synthase CYP8 5.3.99.5 thromboxane-A synthase CYP5

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme variant comprises a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site. In some instances, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of the naturally occuring residue at this position with Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Cys, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, Ile, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr or Val at the axial position. In other instances, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with Asp or Ser at the axial position.

In some embodiments, the engineered heme enzyme is expressed in a bacterial, archaeal or fungal host organism.

In some embodiments, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is a P450 BM3 enzyme or a variant thereof. In some instances, the P450 BM3 enzyme comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1 or a variant thereof.

In some embodiments, the P450 enzyme variant comprises a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site. In some instances, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, Ile, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr or Val at the axial position. In other instances, the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with Asp or Ser at the axial position.

In some embodiments, the P450BM3 enzyme comprises at least one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or all thirteen of the following amino acid substitutions in SEQ ID NO:1: V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, T268A, A290V, L353V, I366V, and E442K.

In some embodiments, the cytochrome P450BM3 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO:1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys. In another embodiment, the cytochrome P450BM3 enzyme variant comprises a T438S mutation and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO:1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys.

In one embodiment, the heme enzyme variant for use in the catalysis of a nitrene insertion into a —S— bond to produce a product having a new S—N bond is a P450BM3 variant comprising the following amino acid substitutions to SEQ ID NO: 1: V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, T268A, A290V, L353V, I366V, and E442K. In another embodiment, the heme variant optionally comprises the following additional amino acid substitutions to SEQ ID NO:1: L75A, I263A and L437A. In yet another embodiment, the heme variant optionally comprises the additional amino acid substitution C400S to SEQ ID NO:1 . In some embodiments, the heme enzyme variant is the H2-5-F10 variant (see, Table 7). In other embodiments, the heme enzyme variant is the P411-CIS variant (see, Table 4).

Table 3 below lists additional cyctochrome P450 enzymes that are suitable for use in the sulfimidation or sulfoximidation reactions of the disclosure. The accession numbers in Table 3 are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes. The cytochrome P450 gene and/or protein sequences disclosed in the following patent documents are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes: WO 2013/076258; CN103160521; CN 103223219; KR 2013081394; JP 5222410; WO 2013/073775; WO 2013/054890; WO 2013/048898; WO 2013/031975; WO 2013/064411; U.S. Pat. No. 8,361,769; WO 2012/150326, CN 102747053; CN 102747052; JP 2012170409; WO 2013/115484; CN 103223219; KR 2013081394; CN 103194461; JP 5222410; WO 2013/086499; WO 2013/076258; WO 2013/073775; WO 2013/064411; WO 2013/054890; WO 2013/031975; U.S. Pat. No. 8,361,769; WO 2012/156976; WO 2012/150326; CN 102747053; CN 102747052; US 20120258938; JP 2012170409; CN 102399796; JP 2012055274; WO 2012/029914; WO 2012/028709; WO 2011/154523; JP 2011234631; WO 2011/121456; EP 2366782; WO 2011/105241; CN 102154234; WO 2011/093185; WO 2011/093187; WO 2011/093186; DE 102010000168; CN 102115757; CN 102093984; CN 102080069; JP 2011103864; WO 2011/042143; WO 2011/038313; JP 2011055721; WO 2011/025203; JP 2011024534; WO 2011/008231; WO 2011/008232; WO 2011/005786; IN 2009DE01216; DE 102009025996; WO 2010/134096; JP 2010233523; JP 2010220609; WO 2010/095721; WO 2010/064764; US 20100136595; JP 2010051174; WO 2010/024437; WO 2010/011882; WO 2009/108388; US 20090209010; US 20090124515; WO 2009/041470; KR 2009028942; WO 2009/039487; WO 2009/020231; JP 2009005687; CN 101333520; CN 101333521; US 20080248545; JP 2008237110; CN 101275141; WO 2008/118545; WO 2008/115844; CN 101255408; CN 101250506; CN 101250505; WO 2008/098198; WO 2008/096695; WO 2008/071673; WO 2008/073498; WO 2008/065370; WO 2008/067070; JP 2008127301; JP 2008054644; KR 794395; EP 1881066; WO 2007/147827; CN 101078014; JP 2007300852; WO 2007/048235; WO 2007/044688; WO 2007/032540; CN 1900286; CN 1900285; JP 2006340611; WO 2006/126723; KR 2006029792; KR 2006029795; WO 2006/105082; WO 2006/076094; US 2006/0156430; WO 2006/065126; JP 2006129836; CN 1746293; WO 2006/029398; JP 2006034215; JP 2006034214; WO 2006/009334; WO 2005/111216; WO 2005/080572; US 2005/0150002; WO 2005/061699; WO 2005/052152; WO 2005/038033; WO 2005/038018; WO 2005/030944; JP 2005065618; WO 2005/017106; WO 2005/017105; US 20050037411; WO 2005/010166; JP 2005021106; JP 2005021104; JP 2005021105; WO 2004/113527; CN 1472323; JP 2004261121; WO 2004/013339; WO 2004/011648; DE 10234126; WO 2004/003190; WO 2003/087381; WO 2003/078577; US 20030170627; US 20030166176; US 20030150025; WO 2003/057830; WO 2003/052050; CN 1358756; US 20030092658; US 20030078404; US 20030066103; WO 2003/014341; US 20030022334; WO 2003/008563; EP 1270722; US 20020187538; WO 2002/092801; WO 2002/088341; US 20020160950; WO 2002/083868; US 20020142379; WO 2002/072758; WO 2002/064765; US 20020076777; US 20020076774; US 20020076774; WO 2002/046386; WO 2002/044213; US 20020061566; CN 1315335; WO 2002/034922; WO 2002/033057; WO 2002/029018; WO 2002/018558; JP 2002058490; US 20020022254; WO 2002/008269; WO 2001/098461; WO 2001/081585; WO 2001/051622; WO 2001/034780; CN 1271005; WO 2001/011071; WO 2001/007630; WO 2001/007574; WO 2000/078973; U.S. Pat. No. 6,130,077; JP 2000152788; WO 2000/031273; WO 2000/020566; WO 2000/000585; DE 19826821; JP 11235174; U.S. Pat. No. 5,939,318; WO 99/19493; WO 99/18224; U.S. Pat. No. 5,886,157; WO 99/08812; U.S. Pat. No. 5,869,283; JP 10262665; WO 98/40470; EP 776974; DE 19507546; GB 2294692; U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,674; JP 07147975; WO 94/29434; JP 06205685; JP 05292959; JP 04144680; DD 298820; EP 477961; SU 1693043; JP 01047375; EP 281245; JP 62104583; JP 63044888; JP 62236485; JP 62104582; and JP 62019084.

TABLE 3 Addiional cytochrome P450 enzymes of the disclosure. SEQ Species Cyp No. Accession No. ID NO Bacillus megaterium 102A1 AAA87602 1 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57069 2 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57068 3 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57062 4 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57061 5 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57059 6 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57058 7 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57055 8 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ACZ37122 9 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57057 10 Bacillus megaterium 102A1 ADA57056 11 Mycobacterium sp. HXN-1500 153A6 CAH04396 12 Tetrahymena thermophile 5013C2 ABY59989 13 Nonomuraea dietziae AGE14547.1 14 Homo sapiens 2R1 NP_078790 15 Macca mulatta 2R1 NP_001180887.1 16 Canis familiaris 2R1 XP_854533 17 Mus musculus 2R1 AAI08963 18 Bacillus halodurans C-125 152A6 NP_242623 19 Streptomyces parvus aryC AFM80022 20 Pseudomonas putida 101A1 P00183 21 Homo sapiens 2D7 AAO49806 22 Rattus norvegicus C27 AAB02287 23 Oryctolagus cuniculus 2B4 AAA65840 24 Bacillus subtilis 102A2 O08394 25 Bacillus subtilis 102A3 O08336 26 B. megaterium DSM 32 102A1 P14779 27 B. cereus ATCC14579 102A5 AAP10153 28 B. licheniformis ATTC1458 102A7 YP 079990 29 B. thuringiensis serovar X YP 037304 30 konkukian str.97-27 R. metallidurans CH34 102E1 YP 585608 31 A. fumigatus Af293 505X EAL92660 32 A. nidulans FGSC A4 505A8 EAA58234 33 A. oryzae ATCC42149 505A3 Q2U4F1 34 A. oryzae ATCC42149 X Q2UNA2 35 F. oxysporum 505A1 Q9Y8G7 36 G. moniliformis X AAG27132 37 G. zeae PH1 505A7 EAA67736 38 G. zeae PH1 505C2 EAA77183 39 M. grisea 70-15 syn 505A5 XP 365223 40 N. crassa OR74 A 505A2 XP 961848 41 Oryza sativa* 97A Oryza sativa* 97B Oryza sativa 97C ABB47954 42 Note: the start methionine (“M”) may be present or absent from these sequences.

In some embodiments, the heme enzyme variant comprises a fragment of the cytochrome P450 enzyme or variant thereof. In some embodiments, the heme enzyme variant is a cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme variant selected from Table 4, Table 5 and Table 6.

TABLE 4 Examplary cytochrome P450BM3 enzymes variants of the disclosure. P450_(BM3) variants Mutation compared to wild-type P450_(BM3) (SEQ ID NO: 1) P450_(BM3) (WT-BM3; SEQ ID NO: 1) None P450_(BM3)-C400A (WT-C400A) C400A P450_(BM3)-T268A (BM3-T268) T268A P411_(BM3) (ABC) C400S P411_(BM3)-T268A (ABC-T268A) T268A, C400S P411_(BM3)-T438S (ABC-T438A) T438S, C400S 9-10A R47C, V78A, K94I, P142S, T175I, A184V, F205C, S226R, H236Q, E252G, R255S, A290V, L353V B1SYN 9-10A + C47S, N70Y, A78L, F87A, I174N, I94K, V184T, I263M, G315S, A330V 9-10A TS V78A, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, A290V, L353V, I366V, E442K 9-10A-TS-F87V 9-10A TS + F87V H2A10 9-10A TS + F87V, L75A, L181A, T268A H2-5-F10 9-10A TS + F87V, L75A, I263A, T268A, L437A H2-4-D4 9-10A TS + F87V, L75A, M177A, L181A, T268A, L437A BM3-CIS (P450_(BM3)-CIS; C3C) 9-10A TS + F87V, T268A BM3-CIS-I263A BM3-CIS + I263A BM3-CIS-A328G BM3-CIS + A328G BM3-CIS-T438S BM3-CIS + T438S BM3-CIS-C400S (P411_(BM3)-CIS; ABC-CIS) BM3-CIS + C400S BM3-CIS-C400S-A268T (P411_(BM3)-CIS; BM3-CIS + C400S + A268T (9-10A TS + P87V, C400S) ABC-CIS-A268T) BM3-CIS-C400D (BM3-CIS-AxD) BM3-CIS + C400D BM3-CIS-C400Y (BM3-CIS-AxY) BM3-CIS + C400Y BM3-CIS-C400K (BM3-CIS-AxK) BM3-CIS + C400K BM3-CIS-C400H (BM3-CIS-AxH) BM3-CIS + C400H BM3-CIS-C400M (BM3-CIS-AxM) BM3-CIS + C400M WT-BM3 (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) WT-AxA (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400A WT-AxD (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400D WT-AxH (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400H WT-AxK (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400K WT-AxM (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400M WT-AxN (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400N WT-AxS (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400S WT-AxY (heme) WT heme domain (amino acids 1-463 of SEQ ID NO: 1) + C400Y BM3-CIS-T438S-AxA BM3-CIS-T438S + C400A BM3-CIS-T438S-AxD BM3-CIS-T438S + C400D BM3-CIS-T438S-AxM BM3-CIS-T438S + C400M BM3-CIS-T438S-AxY BM3-CIS-T438S + C400Y BM3-CIS-T438S-AxT BM3-CIS-T438S + C400T 7-11D R47C, V78A, K94I, P142S, T175I, A184V, F205C, S226R, H236Q, E252G, R255S, A290V, L353V, A82F, A328V

One skilled in the art will understand that any of the mutations listed in Table 4 can be introduced into any cytochrome P450 enzyme of interest by locating the segment of the DNA sequence in the corresponding cytochrome P450 gene which encodes the conserved amino acid residue as described above for identifying the conserved cysteine residue in a cytochrome P450 enzyme of interest that serves as the heme axial ligand. In certain instances, this DNA segment is identified through detailed mutagenesis studies in a conserved region of the protein (see, e.g., Shimizu et al., Biochemistry 27, 4138-4141, 1988). In other instances, the conserved amino acid residue is identified through crystallographic study (see, e.g., Poulos et al., J. Mol. Biol 195:687-700, 1987). In yet other instances, protein sequence alignment algorithms can be used to identify the conserved amino acid residue. For example, BLAST alignment with the P450 BM3 amino acid sequence as the query sequence can be used to identify the heme axial ligand site and/or the equivalent T268 residue in other cytochrome P450 enzymes.

Table 5 below provides non-limiting examples of cytochrome P450 BM3 variants of the disclosure. Each P450 BM3 variant comprises one or more of the listed mutations (Variant Nos. 1-31), wherein a “+” indicates the presence of that particular mutation in the variant. Any of the variants listed in Table 4 can further comprise an 1263 A and/or an A328G mutation and/or at least one, two, three, four, or five of the following alanine substitutions, in any combination, in the P450 BM3 enzyme active site: L75A, M177A, L181A, I263A, and L437A. In particular embodiments, the P450 BM3 variant comprises or consists of the heme domain of any one of Variant Nos. 1-31 listed in Table 5 or a fragment thereof, wherein the fragment is capable of carrying out the nitrene transfer/sulfimidation of the disclosure.

TABLE 5 Exemplary cytochrome P450 BM3 enzyme variants of the disclosure. P450_(BM3) variant Mutation 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 C400X + + + + + + T268A + + + + + + F87V + + + + + + 9-10A-TS + + + + + T438Z + + + + + P450_(BM3) variant Mutation 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 C400X + + + + + + + + + + T268A + + + + + + + + + + F87V + + + + + + + + + + 9-10A-TS + + + + + + + + + + + T438Z + + + + + + + + + + + Mutations relative to the wild-type P450_(BM3) amino acid sequence (SEQ ID NO: 1); “X” is selected from Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, He, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr, and Val; “Z” is selected from Ala, Ser, and Pro; “9-10A-TS” includes the following amino acid substitutions in SEQ ID NO: 1: V78A, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, A290V, L353V, I366V, and E442K.

In other aspects, the disclosure provides chimeric heme enzymes such as, e.g., chimeric P450 polypeptides comprised of recombined sequences from P450 BM3 and at least two, or more distantly related P450 enzymes from Bacillus subtillis or variants. As a non-limiting example, site-directed recombination of three bacterial cytochrome P450s can be performed with sequence crossover sites selected to minimize the number of disrupted contacts within the protein structure. In some embodiments, seven crossover sites can be chosen, resulting in eight sequence blocks. One skilled in the art will understand that the number of crossover sites can be chosen to produce the desired number of sequence blocks, e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 crossover sites for 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10 sequence blocks, respectively. In other embodiments, the numbering used for the chimeric P450 refers to the identity of the parent sequence at each block. For example, “12312312” refers to a sequence containing block 1 from P450 #1, block 2 from P450 #2, block 3 from P450 #3, block 4 from P450 #1, block 5 from P450 #2, and so on. A chimeric library useful for generating the chimeric heme enzymes of the invention can be constructed as described in U.S. Pat. Publ. No. US-2012-0171693-A1 to Arnold et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated herein for all purposes.

As a non-limiting example, chimeric P450 proteins comprising recombined sequences or blocks of amino acids from CYP102A1 (Accession No. J04832), CYP102A2 (Accession No. CAB12544), and CYP102A3 (Accession No. U93874) can be constructed. In certain instances, the CYP102A1 parent sequence is assigned “1”, the CYP102A2 parent sequence is assigned “2”, and the CYP102A3 is parent sequence assigned “3”. In some instances, each parent sequence is divided into eight sequence blocks containing the following amino acids (aa): block 1: aa 1-64; block 2: aa 65-122; block 3: aa 123-166; block 4: aa 167-216; block 5: aa 217-268; block 6: aa 269-328; block 7: aa 329-404; and block 8: aa 405-end. Thus, in this example, there are eight blocks of amino acids and three fragments are possible at each block. For instance, “12312312” refers to a chimeric P450 protein of the invention containing block 1 (aa 1-64) from CYP102A1, block 2 (aa 65-122) from CYP102A2, block 3 (aa 123-166) from CYP102A3, block 4 (aa 167-216) from CYP102A1, block 5 (aa 217-268) from CYP102A2, and so on. Non-limiting examples of chimeric P450 proteins include those set forth in Table 6 (C2G9, X7, X7-12, C2E6, X7-9, C2B12, TSP234). In some embodiments, the chimeric heme enzymes of the invention can comprise at least one or more of the mutations described herein.

TABLE 6 Exemplary preferred chimeric cytochrome P450 enzymes of the invention. Chimeric P450s Heme domain block sequence SEQ ID NO C2G9 22223132 43 X7 22312333 44 X7-12 12112333 45 C2E6 11113311 46 X7-9 32312333 47 C2B12 32313233 48 TSP234 22313333 49

In another embodiment, the disclosure provides a method for catalyzing a nitrene insertion or transfer into a —S— bond to produce a product with a new S—N bond. The method comprising: providing a —S— containing substrate, a nitrene precursor and an engineered P450 enzyme as described herein and above; and allowing the reaction to proceed for a time sufficient to form a product having a new S—N bond.

In some embodiments, the engineered P450 enzyme is expressed in a bacterial, archaeal or fungal host organism.

In some embodiments, the cytochrome P450 enzyme is a P450 BM3 enzyme or a variant thereof. In some instances, the P450 BM3 enzyme comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1 or a variant thereof.

An enzyme's total turnover number (or TTN) refers to the maximum number of molecules of a substrate that the enzyme can convert before becoming inactivated. In general, the TTN for the heme enzymes of the disclosure range from about 1 to about 100,000 or higher. For example, the TTN can be from about 1 to about 1,000, or from about 1,000 to about 10,000, or from about 10,000 to about 100,000, or from about 50,000 to about 100,000, or at least about 100,000. In particular embodiments, the TTN can be from about 100 to about 10,000, or from about 10,000 to about 50,000, or from about 5,000 to about 10,000, or from about 1,000 to about 5,000, or from about 100 to about 1,000, or from about 250 to about 1,000, or from about 100 to about 500, or at least about 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75 , 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, 700, 750, 800, 850, 900, 950, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000, 3500, 4000, 4500, 5000, 5500, 6000, 6500, 7000, 7500, 8000, 8500, 9000, 9500, 10,000, 15,000, 20,000, 25,000, 30,000, 35,000, 40,000, 45,000, 50,000, 55,000, 60,000, 65,000, 70,000, 75,000, 80,000, 85,000, 90,000, 95,000, 100,000, or more. In certain embodiments, the variant or chimeric heme enzymes of the disclosure have higher TTNs compared to the wild-type sequences. In some instances, the variant or chimeric heme enzymes have TTNs greater than about 100 (e.g., at least about 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 325, 350, 400, 450, 500, or more) in carrying out in vitro sulfimidation reactions. In other instances, the variant or chimeric heme enzymes have TTNs greater than about 1000 (e.g., at least about 1000, 2500, 5000, 10,000, 25,000, 50,000, 75,000, 100,000, or more) in carrying out in vivo whole cell reactions.

In general, the term “mutant” or “variant” as used herein with reference to a molecule such as polynucleotide or polypeptide, indicates that has been mutated from the molecule as it exits in nature. In particular, the term “mutate” and “mutation” as used herein indicates any modification of a nucleic acid and/or polypeptide which results in an altered nucleic acid or polypeptide. Mutations include any process or mechanism resulting in a mutant protein, enzyme, polynucleotide, gene, or cell. This includes any mutation in which a polynucleotide or polypeptide sequence is altered, as well as any detectable change in a cell wherein the mutant polynucleotide or polypeptide is expressed arising from such a mutation. Typically, a mutation occurs in a polynucleotide or gene sequence, by point mutations, deletions, or insertions of single or multiple nucleotide residues. A mutation in a polynucleotide includes mutations arising within a protein-encoding region of a gene as well as mutations in regions outside of a protein-encoding sequence, such as, but not limited to, regulatory or promoter sequences. A mutation in a coding polynucleotide such as a gene can be “silent”, i.e., not reflected in an amino acid alteration upon expression, leading to a “sequence-conservative” variant of the gene. A mutation in a polypeptide includes but is not limited to mutation in the polypeptide sequence and mutation resulting in a modified amino acid. Non-limiting examples of a modified amino acid include a glycosylated amino acid, a sulfated amino acid, a prenylated (e.g., farnesylated, geranylgeranylated) amino acid, an acetylated amino acid, an acylated amino acid, a PEGylated amino acid, a biotinylated amino acid, a carboxylated amino acid, a phosphorylated amino acid, and the like. References adequate to guide one of skill in the modification of amino acids are replete throughout the literature. Example protocols are found in Walker (1998) Protein Protocols on CD-ROM (Humana Press, Towata, N.J.).

A mutant or engineered protein or enzyme is usually, although not necessarily, expressed from a mutant polynucleotide or gene. Engineered cells can be obtained by introduction of an engineered gene or part of it in the cell. The terms “engineered cell”, “mutant cell” or “recombinant cell” as used herein refer to a cell that has been altered or derived, or is in some way different or changed, from a parent cell, including a wild-type cell. The term “recombinant” as used herein with reference to a cell in alternative to “wild-type” or “native”, indicates a cell that has been engineered to modify the genotype and/or the phenotype of the cell as found in nature, e.g., by modifying the polynucleotides and/or polypeptides expressed in the cell as it exists in nature. A “wild-type cell” refers instead to a cell which has not been engineered and displays the genotype and phenotype of said cell as found in nature.

The term “engineer” refers to any manipulation of a molecule or cell that result in a detectable change in the molecule or cell, wherein the manipulation includes but is not limited to inserting a polynucleotide and/or polypeptide heterologous to the cell and mutating a polynucleotide and/or polypeptide native to the cell. Engineered cells can also be obtained by modification of the cell' genetic material, lipid distribution, or protein content. In addition to recombinant production, the enzymes may be produced by direct peptide synthesis using solid-phase techniques, such as Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis. Peptide synthesis may be performed using manual techniques or by automation. Automated synthesis may be achieved, for example, using Applied Biosystems 431A Peptide Synthesizer (Perkin Elmer, Foster City, Calif.) in accordance with the instructions provided by the manufacturer

Variants of naturally-occurring sequences can be generated by site-directed mutagenesis (Botstein and Shortie 1985; Smith 1985; Carter 1986; Dale and Felix 1996; Ling and Robinson 1997), mutagenesis using uracil containing templates (Kunkel, Roberts et al. 1987; Bass, Sorrells et al. 1988), oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis (Zoller and Smith 1983; Zoller and Smith 1987; Zoller 1992), phosphorothioate-modified DNA mutagenesis (Taylor, Schmidt et al. 1985; Nakamaye and Eckstein 1986; Sayers, Schmidt et al. 1988), mutagenesis using gapped duplex DNA (Kramer, Drutsa et al. 1984; Kramer and Fritz 1987), point mismatch, mutagenesis using repair-deficient host strains, deletion mutagenesis (Eghtedarzadeh and Henikoff 1986), restriction-selection and restriction-purification (Braxton and Wells 1991), mutagenesis by total gene synthesis (Nambiar, Stackhouse et al. 1984; Grundstrom, Zenke et al. 1985; Wells, Vasser et al. 1985)], double-strand break repair (Mandecki 1986), and the like. Additional details on many of the above methods can be found in Methods in Enzymology Volume 154, which also describes useful controls for trouble-shooting problems with various mutagenesis methods.

Additional details regarding the methods to generate variants of naturally-occurring sequences can be found in the following U.S. patents, PCT publications, and EPO publications: U.S. Pat. No. 5,605,793 to Stemmer (Feb. 25, 1997), “Methods for In vitro Recombination;” U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,238 to Stemmer et al. (Sep. 22, 1998) “Methods for Generating Polynucleotides having Desired Characteristics by Iterative Selection and Recombination;” U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,721 to Stemmer et al. (Nov. 3, 1998), “DNA Mutagenesis by Random Fragmentation and Reassembly;” U.S. Pat. No. 5,834,252 to Stemmer, et al. (Nov. 10, 1998) “End-Complementary Polymerase Reaction;” U.S. Pat. No. 5,837,458 to Minshull, et al. (Nov. 17, 1998), “Methods and Compositions for Cellular and Metabolic Engineering;” WO 95/22625, Stemmer and Crameri, “Mutagenesis by Random Fragmentation and Reassembly;” WO 96/33207 by Stemmer and Lipschutz “End Complementary Polymerase Chain Reaction;” WO 97/20078 by Stemmer and Crameri “Methods for Generating Polynucleotides having Desired Characteristics by Iterative Selection and Recombination;” WO 97/35966 by Minshull and Stemmer, “Methods and Compositions for Cellular and Metabolic Engineering;” WO 99/41402 by Punnonen et al. “Targeting of Genetic Vaccine Vectors;” WO 99/41383 by Punnonen et al. “Antigen Library Immunization;” WO 99/41369 by Punnonen et al. “Genetic Vaccine Vector Engineering;” WO 99/41368 by Punnonen et al. “Optimization of Immunomodulatory Properties of Genetic Vaccines;” EP 752008 by Stemmer and Crameri, “DNA Mutagenesis by Random Fragmentation and Reassembly;” EP 0932670 by Stemmer “Evolving Cellular DNA Uptake by Recursive Sequence Recombination;” WO 99/23107 by Stemmer et al., “Modification of Virus Tropism and Host Range by Viral Genome Shuffling;” WO 99/21979 by Apt et al., “Human Papillomavirus Vectors;” WO 98/31837 by del Cardayre et al. “Evolution of Whole Cells and Organisms by Recursive Sequence Recombination;” WO 98/27230 by Patten and Stemmer, “Methods and Compositions for Polypeptide Engineering;” WO 98/13487 by Stemmer et al., “Methods for Optimization of Gene Therapy by Recursive Sequence Shuffling and Selection;” WO 00/00632, “Methods for Generating Highly Diverse Libraries;” WO 00/09679, “Methods for Obtaining in vitro Recombined Polynucleotide Sequence Banks and Resulting Sequences;” WO 98/42832 by Arnold et al., “Recombination of Polynucleotide Sequences Using Random or Defined Primers;” WO 99/29902 by Arnold et al., “Method for Creating Polynucleotide and Polypeptide Sequences;” WO 98/41653 by Vind, “An in vitro Method for Construction of a DNA Library;” WO 98/41622 by Borchert et al., “Method for Constructing a Library Using DNA Shuffling;” WO 98/42727 by Pati and Zarling, “Sequence Alterations using Homologous Recombination;” WO 00/18906 by Patten et al., “Shuffling of Codon-Altered Genes;” WO 00/04190 by del Cardayre et al. “Evolution of Whole Cells and Organisms by Recursive Recombination;” WO 00/42561 by Crameri et al., “Oligonucleotide Mediated Nucleic Acid Recombination;” WO 00/42559 by Selifonov and Stemmer “Methods of Populating Data Structures for Use in Evolutionary Simulations;” WO 00/42560 by Selifonov et al., “Methods for Making Character Strings, Polynucleotides & Polypeptides Having Desired Characteristics;” WO 01/23401 by Welch et al., “Use of Codon-Varied Oligonucleotide Synthesis for Synthetic Shuffling;” and WO 01/64864 “Single-Stranded Nucleic Acid Template-Mediated Recombination and Nucleic Acid Fragment Isolation” by Affholter.

In particular, in some embodiments, site-directed mutagenesis can be performed on predetermined residues of a heme containing enzyme or P450 polypeptide. These predetermined sites can be identified using the crystal structure of the heme or P450 enzyme if available or a crystal structure of a homologous protein that shares at least 20% sequence identity with a heme or P450 enzyme of the disclosure and an alignment of the polynucleotide or amino acid sequences and its homologous protein. Mutagenesis of the predetermined sites can be performed changing one, two or three of the nucleotides in the codon that encodes for each of the predetermined amino acids. Mutagenesis of the predetermined sites can be performed in the described way so that each of the predetermined amino acid is mutated to any of the other 19 natural amino acids. Substitution of the predetermined sites with unnatural amino acids can be performed using methods established in vivo (Wang, Xie et al. 2006), in vitro (Shimizu, Kuruma et al. 2006), semisynthetic (Schwarzer and Cole 2005) or synthetic methods (Camarero and Mitchell 2005) for incorporation of unnatural amino acids into polypeptides.

In still further embodiments, libraries of engineered variants can be obtained by laboratory evolutionary methods and/or rational design methods, using one or a combination of techniques such as random mutagenesis, site-saturation mutagenesis, site-directed mutagenesis, DNA shuffling, DNA recombination, and the like and targeting one or more of the amino acid residues, one at a time or simultaneously. Said libraries can be arrayed on multi-well plates and screened for activity on the target molecule using a colorimetric, fluorimetric, enzymatic, or luminescence assay and the like. For example a method for making libraries for directed evolution to obtain P450s with new or altered properties is recombination, or chimeragenesis, in which portions of homologous P450s are swapped to form functional chimeras, can use used. Recombining equivalent segments of homologous proteins generates variants in which every amino acid substitution has already proven to be successful in one of the parents. Therefore, the amino acid mutations made in this way are less disruptive, on average, than random mutations. A structure-based algorithm, such as SCHEMA, can be used to identify fragments of proteins that can be recombined to minimize disruptive interactions that would prevent the protein from folding into its active form.

In some embodiments, activation of a target site in an organic molecule can be performed in a whole-cell system. To prepare the whole-cell system, the encoding sequence can be introduced into a host cell using a suitable vector, such as a plasmid, a cosmid, a phage, a virus, a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC), a yeast artificial chromosome (YAC), or the like, into which the said sequence of the disclosure has been inserted, in a forward or reverse orientation. In some embodiments, the construct further comprises regulatory sequences, including, for example, a promoter linked to the sequence. Large numbers of suitable vectors and promoters are known to those of skill in the art, and are commercially available.

Accordingly, in other embodiments, vectors that include a nucleic acid molecule of the disclosure are provided. In other embodiments, host cells transfected with a nucleic acid molecule of the disclosure, or a vector that includes a nucleic acid molecule of the disclosure, are provided. Host cells include eucaryotic cells such as yeast cells, insect cells, or animal cells. Host cells also include procaryotic cells such as bacterial cells.

In other embodiments, methods for producing a cell for carrying out or producing an enzyme catalyst of the disclosure are provided. Such methods generally include: (a) transforming a cell with an isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a polypeptide having the enzymatic activity that transfers or inserts a nitrene into a —S— target site; (b) transforming a cell with an isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a polypeptide of the disclosure; or (c) transforming a cell with an isolated nucleic acid molecule of the disclosure.

The terms “vector”, “vector construct” and “expression vector” as used herein refer to a vehicle by which a DNA or RNA sequence (e.g. a foreign gene) can be introduced into a host cell, so as to transform the host and promote expression (e.g. transcription and translation) of the introduced sequence. Vectors typically comprise the DNA of a transmissible agent, into which foreign DNA encoding a protein is inserted by restriction enzyme technology. A common type of vector is a “plasmid”, which generally is a self-contained molecule of double-stranded DNA that can readily accept additional (foreign) DNA and which can readily introduced into a suitable host cell. A large number of vectors, including plasmid and fungal vectors, have been described for replication and/or expression in a variety of eukaryotic and prokaryotic hosts. Non-limiting examples include pKK plasmids (Clonetech), pUC plasmids, pET plasmids (Novagen, Inc., Madison, Wis.), pRSET or pREP plasmids (Invitrogen, San Diego, Calif.), or pMAL plasmids (New England Biolabs, Beverly, Mass.), and many appropriate host cells, using methods disclosed or cited herein or otherwise known to those skilled in the relevant art. Recombinant cloning vectors will often include one or more replication systems for cloning or expression, one or more markers for selection in the host, e.g., antibiotic resistance, and one or more expression cassettes.

The terms “express” and “expression” refers to allowing or causing the information in a gene or DNA sequence to become manifest, for example producing a protein by activating the cellular functions involved in transcription and translation of a corresponding gene or DNA sequence. A DNA sequence is expressed in or by a cell to form an “expression product” such as a protein. The expression product itself, e.g. the resulting protein, may also be said to be “expressed” by the cell. A polynucleotide or polypeptide is expressed recombinantly, for example, when it is expressed or produced in a foreign host cell under the control of a foreign or native promoter, or in a native host cell under the control of a foreign promoter.

Polynucleotides provided herein can be incorporated into any one of a variety of expression vectors suitable for expressing a polypeptide. Suitable vectors include chromosomal, nonchromosomal and synthetic DNA sequences, e.g., derivatives of SV40; bacterial plasmids; phage DNA; baculovirus; yeast plasmids; vectors derived from combinations of plasmids and phage DNA, viral DNA such as vaccinia, adenovirus, fowl pox virus, pseudorabies, adenovirus, adeno-associated viruses, retroviruses and many others. Any vector that transduces genetic material into a cell, and, if replication is desired, which is replicable and viable in the relevant host can be used.

Vectors can be employed to transform an appropriate host to permit the host to express a protein or polypeptide. Examples of appropriate expression hosts include: bacterial cells, such as E. coli, B. subtilis, Streptomyces, and Salmonella typhimurium; fungal cells, such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia pastoris, and Neurospora crassa; insect cells such as Drosophila and Spodoptera frugiperda; mammalian cells such as CHO, COS, BHK, HEK 293 br Bowes melanoma; or plant cells or explants, etc.

In bacterial systems, a number of expression vectors may be selected depending upon the use intended for the polypeptide. For example, such vectors include, but are not limited to, multifunctional E. coli cloning and expression vectors such as BLUESCRIPT (Stratagene), in which the coding sequence may be ligated into the vector in-frame with sequences for the amino-terminal Met and the subsequent 7 residues of beta-galactosidase so that a hybrid protein is produced; pIN vectors; pET vectors; and the like.

Similarly, in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae a number of vectors containing constitutive or inducible promoters such as alpha factor, alcohol oxidase and PGH may be used for production of an enzyme catalyst of the disclosure.

In order to perform the sulfimidation reactions described herein, a nitrene precursor is used. The nitrene precursor can be an azide. For example, the nitrene precursor can have the general formula: R¹—N₃, wherein R¹ is:

(i) a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR², or —NR², wherein R² is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl;

(ii) —SO₂R³, wherein R³ a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl;

(iii) —COR⁴ wherein R⁴ is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; or

(iv) —P(O)(OR⁵)(OR⁶), wherein R⁵ and R⁶ are independently H, a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl.

In another embodiment, the azide has a structure selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl. In a specific embodiment, the azide is a tosyl azide.

The nitrene precursor can also be is selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl and wherein —OTs can be ITs. In certain aspects, the nitrene precursor contains a leaving group. Suitable leaving groups include, but are not limited to, OTs (tosylates), OMs (mesylates), halogen, N₂, H₂ and ITs (N-tosylimine).

In certain aspects, the disclosure provides methods and systems for heme-containing enzymes to catalyze nitrogen transfer to a sulfur in an organosulfur compound, also known as sulfimidation or sulfoximidation. The reactions can be intermolecular, intramolecular and a combination thereof. These heme containing enzymes catalyze the sulfimidation or sulfoximidation via nitrene transfer or insertion, which allows the generation of a new S—N bond. The reactions proceed with high regio, chemo, and/or diastereoselectivity as a result of uing a heme containing enzyme.

In one embodiment, the disclosure provides a method for catalyzing a nitrene insertion or transfer to a sulfur atom targe in an oranosulfur compound to produce a product having a new S—N bond. The method comprises: providing a sulfur containing substrate, a nitrene precursor and an engineered heme enzyme; and allowing the reaction to proceed for a time sufficient to form a product having a new S—N bond. In other embodiments, the disclosure provides a product of the methods herein.

In certain embodiments, the nitrene precursor contains an azide functional group. In one embodiment, a product obtained from the methods of the disclosure comprises a compound of Formula 1a:

wherein R¹ is a sulfoxide, a carbonyl or a phosphonate; wherein R² is H or any alkyl or aryl; and wherein R³ is H, O or an optionally substituted aryl group. In one embodiment, R¹ is a sulfoxide of formula SO₂R⁵, wherein R⁵ any alkyl, any aryl, —OR⁶ or NR⁷, wherein R⁶ and R⁷ are any alkyl or any aryl. IN a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or aryl. In still a further or alternative embodiment, R³ is H. In another embodiment, R¹ is a phosphonate of formula P(O)(OR⁸)(OR⁹), wherein R⁸ and R⁹ are independently any aryl or any alkyl. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or aryl. In another embodiment, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment, R³ is an optionally substituted aryl group. In a further embodiment, R¹ is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R² is H or any alkyl or any aryl. In another embodiment, R¹ is a carbonyl group. In a further embodiment, R² is any alkyl or any aryl. In still a further embodiment, R³ is O.

The methods of the disclosure include forming reaction mixtures that contain the heme enzymes described herein. The heme enzymes can be, for example, purified prior to addition to a reaction mixture or secreted by a cell present in the reaction mixture. The reaction mixture can contain a cell lysate including the enzyme, as well as other proteins and other cellular materials. Alternatively, a heme enzyme can catalyze the reaction within a cell expressing the heme enzyme. Any suitable amount of heme enzyme can be used in the methods of the disclosure. In general, the reaction mixtures contain from about 0.01 mol % to about 10 mol % heme enzyme with respect to the nitrene precursor and/or substrate. The reaction mixtures can contain, for example, from about 0.01 mol % to about 0.1 mol % heme enzyme, or from about 0.1 mol % to about 1 mol % heme enzyme, or from about 1 mol % to about 10 mol % heme enzyme. The reaction mixtures can contain from about 0.05 mol % to about 5 mol % heme enzyme, or from about 0.05 mol % to about 0.5 mol % heme enzyme. The reaction mixtures can contain about 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, or about 1 mol % heme enzyme.

The concentration of the organosulfur substrate and nitrene precursor are typically in the range of from about 100 μM to about 1 M. The concentration can be, for example, from about 100 μM to about 1 mM, or about from 1 mM to about 100 mM, or from about 100 mM to about 500 mM, or from about 500 mM to 1 M. The concentration can be from about 500 μM to about 500 mM, 500 μM to about 50 mM, or from about 1 mM to about 50 mM, or from about 15 mM to about 45 mM, or from about 15 mM to about 30 mM. The concentration of organosulfur substrate and nitrene precursor can be, for example, about 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, or 900 μM. The concentration of organosulfur substrate and nitrene precursor can be about 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400, 450, or 500 mM.

Reaction mixtures can contain additional components. As non-limiting examples, the reaction mixtures can contain buffers (e.g., 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid (MES), 2-[4-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazin-1-yl]ethanesulfonic acid (HEPES), 3-morpholinopropane-1-sulfonic acid (MOPS), 2-amino-2-hydroxymethyl-propane-1,3-diol (TRIS), potassium phosphate, sodium phosphate, phosphate-buffered saline, sodium citrate, sodium acetate, and sodium borate), cosolvents (e.g., dimethylsulfoxide, dimethylformamide, ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, glycerol, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, acetonitrile, and acetic acid), salts (e.g., NaCl, KCl, CaCl₂, and salts of Mn²⁺ and Mg²⁺), denaturants (e.g., urea and guandinium hydrochloride), detergents (e.g., sodium dodecylsulfate and Triton-X 100), chelators (e.g., ethylene glycol-bis(2-aminoethylether)-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid (EGTA), 2-({2-[Bis(carboxymethyl)amino]ethyl} (carboxymethyl)amino)acetic acid (EDTA), and 1,2-bis(o-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N,N-tetraacetic acid (BAPTA)), sugars (e.g., glucose, sucrose, and the like), and reducing agents (e.g., sodium dithionite, NADPH, NADH, dithiothreitol (DTT), β-mercaptoethanol (BME), and tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP)). Buffers, cosolvents, salts, denaturants, detergents, chelators, sugars, and reducing agents can be used at any suitable concentration, which can be readily determined by one of skill in the art. In general, buffers, cosolvents, salts, denaturants, detergents, chelators, sugars, and reducing agents, if present, are included in reaction mixtures at concentrations ranging from about 1 μM to about 1 M. For example, a buffer, a cosolvent, a salt, a denaturant, a detergent, a chelator, a sugar, or a reducing agent can be included in a reaction mixture at a concentration of about 1 μM, or about 10 μM, or about 100 μM, or about 1 mM, or about 10 mM, or about 25 mM, or about 50 mM, or about 100 mM, or about 250 mM, or about 500 mM, or about 1 M. In some embodiments, a reducing agent is used in a sub-stoichiometric amount with respect to the organosulfur substrate and nitrene precursor. Cosolvents, in particular, can be included in the reaction mixtures in amounts ranging from about 1% v/v to about 75% v/v, or higher. A cosolvent can be included in the reaction mixture, for example, in an amount of about 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50% (v/v).

Reactions are conducted under conditions sufficient to catalyze the formation of the desired products. The reactions can be conducted at any suitable temperature. In general, the reactions are conducted at a temperature of from about 4° C. to about 40° C. The reactions can be conducted, for example, at about 25° C. or about 37° C. The reactions can be conducted at any suitable pH. In general, the reactions are conducted at a pH of from about 6 to about 10. The reactions can be conducted, for example, at a pH of from about 6.5 to about 9. The reactions can be conducted for any suitable length of time. In general, the reaction mixtures are incubated under suitable conditions for anywhere between about 1 minute and several hours. The reactions can be conducted, for example, for about 1 minute, or about 5 minutes, or about 10 minutes, or about 30 minutes, or about 1 hour, or about 2 hours, or about 4 hours, or about 8 hours, or about 12 hours, or about 24 hours, or about 48 hours, or about 72 hours. Reactions can be conducted under aerobic conditions or anaerobic conditions. Reactions can be conducted under an inert atmosphere, such as a nitrogen atmosphere or argon atmosphere. In some embodiments, a solvent is added to the reaction mixture. In some embodiments, the solvent forms a second phase, and the cyclopropanation occurs in the aqueous phase. In some embodiments, the heme enzyme is located in the aqueous layer whereas the substrates and/or products occur in an organic layer. Other reaction conditions may be employed in the methods of the disclosure, depending on the identity of a particular heme enzyme, organosulfur substrate and nitrene precursor.

Reactions can be conducted in vivo with intact cells expressing a heme enzyme of the disclosure. The in vivo reactions can be conducted with any of the host cells used for expression of the heme enzymes, as described herein. A suspension of cells can be formed in a suitable medium supplemented with nutrients (such as mineral micronutrients, glucose and other fuel sources, and the like). Nitrene transfer or insertion yields from reactions in vivo can be controlled, in part, by controlling the cell density in the reaction mixtures. Cellular suspensions exhibiting optical densities ranging from about 0.1 to about 50 at 600 nm can be used for nitrene transfer reactions. Other densities can be useful, depending on the cell type, specific heme enzymes, or other factors.

The methods of the disclosure can be assessed in terms of the diastereoselectivity and/or enantioselectivity of sulfimidation or sulfoximidatino reaction—that is, the extent to which the reaction produces a particular isomer, whether a diastereomer or enantiomer. A perfectly selective reaction produces a single isomer, such that the isomer constitutes 100% of the product. As another non-limiting example, a reaction producing a particular enantiomer constituting 90% of the total product can be said to be 90% enantioselective. A reaction producing a particular diastereomer constituting 30% of the total product, meanwhile, can be said to be 30%>diastereoselective.

In general, the methods of the invention include reactions that are from about 1% to about 99% diastereoselective. The reactions are from about 1% to about 99% enantioselective. The reaction can be, for example, from about 10% to about 90% diastereoselective, or from about 20%>to about 80%>diastereoselective, or from about 40%>to about 60%) diastereoselective, or from about 1% to about 25% diastereoselective, or from about 25%o to about 50% diastereoselective, or from about 50% to about 75% diastereoselective. The reaction can be about 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, or about 95% diastereoselective. The reaction can be from about 10% to about 90% enantioselective, from about 20% to about 80% enantioselective, or from about 40% to about 60% enantioselective, or from about 1% to about 25% enantioselective, or from about 25% to about 50% enantioselective, or from about 50% to about 75% enantioselective. The reaction can be about 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, or about 95% enantioselective. Accordingly some embodiments of the disclosure provide methods wherein the reaction is at least 30% to at least 90% diastereoselective. In some embodiments, the reaction is at least 30% to at least 90% enantioselective. As described herein, the ratios and reactants (e.g., the type of nitrene precursor the heme variant and cofactors) can be modified to yield a desired ratio of enantiomers.

One of skill in the art will appreciate that stereochemical configuration of certain of the products herein will be determined in part by the orientation of the product of the enzymatic step. Certain of the products herein will be “cis” compounds or “Z” compounds. Other products will be “trans” compounds or “E” compounds.

In certain instances, two cis isomers and two trans isomers can arise from the reaction of an organosulfur substrate and a nitrene precursor. The two cis isomers are enantiomers with respect to one another, in that the structures are non-superimposable mirror images of each other. Similarly, the two trans isomers are enantiomers. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the absolute stereochemistry of a product—that is, whether a given chiral center exhibits the right-handed “R” configuration or the left-handed “S” configuration—will depend on factors including the structures of the particular substrate and nitrene precursor used in the reaction, as well as the identity of the enzyme. The relative stereochemistry—that is, whether a product exhibits a cis or trans configuration—as well as for the distribution of product mixtures will also depend on such factors.

In certain instances, the product mixtures have cis:trans ratios ranging from about 1:99 to about 99:1. The cis:trans ratio can be, for example, from about 1:99 to about 1:75, or from about 1:75 to about 1:50, or from about 1:50 to about 1:25, or from about 99:1 to about 75:1 , or from about 75:1 to about 50:1 , or from about 50:1 to about 25:1. The cis:trans ratio can be from about 1:80 to about 1:20, or from about 1:60 to about 1:40, or from about 80:1 to about 20:1 or from about 60:1 to about 40:1. The cis:trans ratio can be about 1:5, 1:10, 1:15, 1:20, 1:25, 1:30, 1:35, 1:40, 1:45, 1:50, 1:55, 1:60, 1:65, 1:70, 1:75, 1:80, 1:85, 1:90, or about 1:95. The cis:trans ratio can be about 5:1, 10:1, 15:1, 20:1, 25:1, 30:1, 35:1, 40:1, 45:1, 50:1, 55:1, 60:1, 65:1, 70:1, 75:1, 80:1, 85:1, 90:1, or about 95:1.

The distribution of a product mixture can be assessed in terms of the enantiomeric excess, or “% ee,” of the mixture. The enantiomeric excess refers to the difference in the mole fractions of two enantiomers in a mixture. In certain instances, as a non-limiting example, for instance, the enantiomeric excess of the “E” or trans (R,R) and (S,S) enantiomers can be calculated using the formula: %>eeE=[(% R,R−% s,sy(% R,R+% s,s)]×100%), wherein χ is the mole fraction for a given enantiomer. The enantiomeric excess of the “Z” or cis enantiomers (% eez) can be calculated in the same manner.

In certain instances, product mixtures exhibit % ee values ranging from about 1% to about 99%, or from about −1% to about −99%. The closer a given % ee value is to 99% (or −99%), the purer the reaction mixture is. The % ee can be, for example, from about −90% to about 90%), or from about −80% to about 80%, or from about −70% to about 70%, or from about −60%) to about 60%, or from about −40% to about 40%, or from about −20% to about 20%). The % ee can be from about 1% to about 99%, or from about 20% to about 80%, or from about 40% to about 60%, or from about 1% to about 25%, or from about 25% to about 50%), or from about 50% to about 75%. The % ee can be from about −1% to about −99%, or from about −20% to about −80%, or from about −40% to about −60%, or from about —1% to about −25%), or from about −25% to about −50%, or from about −50% to about −75%. The % ee can be about −99%, −95%, −90%, −85%, −80%, −75%, −70%, −65%, −60%, −55%, −50%, −45%, −40%, −35%, −30%, −25%, −20%, −15%, −10%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, or about 95%. Any of these values can be % eeE values or % eez values.

Accordingly, some embodiments of the disclosure provide methods for producing a plurality of products having a % eez of from about −90% to about 90%. In some embodiments, the % eez is at least 90%. In some embodiments, the % eez is at least −99%. In some embodiments, the % eeE is from about −90% to about 90%. In some embodiments, the % eeE is at least 90%. In some embodiments, the % eeE is at least −99%.

EXAMPLES

The present disclosure is further illustrated in the following examples, which are provided by way of illustration and are not intended to be limiting.

Work on intramolecular C—H amination was limited to aryl sulfonylazide substrates as nitrene precursors. Despite the success with this substrate class, research was performed to assess the influence of the R-group on the nitrenoid transfer and thus a series of substrates displaying a range of stereoelectronic properties that have been shown to be effective nitrene precursors in other contexts were tested (FIG. 5-6).

For the thioether acceptor substrate thioanisole was chosen, which has been used in enzymatic sulfoxidation by cytochrome P450s and other oxygenase enzymes. As a catalyst, P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S, a variant of cytochrome P450_(BM3), possessing the aforementioned C400S mutation was used. This enzyme, which contains 14 mutations relative to wild-type P450_(BM3) (Table A), was previously shown to be a good catalyst in the activation of azides for intramolecular C—H insertion. Reaction conditions were similar to those reported for intramolecular C—H amination (see, e.g., International Application Publication No. WO 2014/058729, incorporated herein by reference for all purposes) under anaerobic conditions with nicotine adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) supplied as a reductant.

TABLE A Mutations present in P450 BM3 variants used in the disclosure Enzyme Mutations relative to wild-type P450_(BM3) P450_(BM3) none P450_(BM3)-T268A T268A P411_(BM3) C400S P411_(BM3)-T268A T268A, C400S P450_(BM3)-CIS T438S V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, A290V, L353V, I366V, T438S, E442K P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S P450BM3-CIS C400S, T438S P411_(BM3)-CIS A268T P450BM3-CIS, A268T, C400S, T438S T438S P411_(BM3) H2-A-10 P450BM3-CIS, L75A, L181A, C400S, P411_(BM3) H2-5-F10 P450BM3-CIS, L75A, I263A, C400S, L437A P411_(BM3) H2-4-D4 P450BM3-CIS, L75A, M177A, L181A, C400S, L437A, T438S

Considering the small size of reactive oxygen species naturally produced by P450s, it was anticipated that smaller azides, such as mesyl azide would be less sterically demanding than aryl or arylsulfonyl azides and thus a more suitable partner for reaction with thioanisole. Tosyl azide was shown to be an exception precursor for sulfimidation.

Control experiments confirmed that enzyme was necessary for sulfimide formation (Table 7). Free hemin showed no activity in this transformation.

In other non-natural P450 reactions reported to date, it was shown that amino acid substitutions could alter both the activity and stereoselectivity of the enzymes. Thus, mutation of conserved residues C400 and T268 and other active-site residues were tested to determine their effect on sulfimidation activity (Table B). For these experiments we used the more reactive sulfide 4-methoxythioanisole, for which we measured 300 TTN with P411BM3-CIS T438S (see below for more discussion of the effect of sulfide substituents on reactivity).

TABLE B Sulfimidation Activity and Selectivity of BM3 Variants using Substrates and Reaction Conditions Shown^(a)

entry enzyme TTN er 1 P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S 300 74:26 2 P450_(BM3)-CIS T438S 7 nd 3 P411_(BM3)-CIS A268T T438S 19 nd 4 P411_(BM3)-H2-5-F10 140 29:71 5 P411_(BM3)-H2-A-10 84 57:43 6 P411_(BM3)-H2-4-D4 32 70:30 7 P450_(BM3) 10 nd 8 P411_(BM3) 11 nd 9 P450_(BM3)-T268A 19 nd 10 P411_(BM3)-T268A 17 nd 11 P411_(BM3)-CIS I263A T438S 320 18:82 ^(a)“P411” denotes Ser-ligated (C400S) variant of cytochrome P450BM3. Variant IDs and specific amino acid substitutions in each can be found in Table A. TTN—total turnover number, er = enantiomeric ratio, nd = not determined.

Since activating mutations T268A and C400S were already present in P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S, the effects of reverting each mutation to the wild-type residue (Table B, entries 1-3) were tested. Each revertant was much less active than the parent, supporting the benefit of having the C400S and T268A mutations for effective nitrene-transfer chemistry. Given the bulky nature of the aryl sulfonylazide nitrene sources and aryl thioethers, the C400S mutants of several P450BM3 variants that had been engineered via combinatorial alanine scanning to hydroxylate large substrates were tested (Table B, entries 4-6). While P411_(BM3)-H2-5-F10 displayed comparably high levels of activity to P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S (>100 TTN), the other mutants we tested from this library were less productive. The effects of introducing the activating mutations into wild-type P450BM3 was also tested. Although these wild-type derivatives were highly active and stereoselective for intramolecular C—H amination, neither single mutant (T268A or C400S) nor the double mutant (T268A+C400S) were as active for intermolecular sulfimidation.

The turnover data presented above demonstrate the sequence dependence of sulfimidation productivity. The effects, however, could be due to changes in stability of the enzymes that lead to degradation over the course of the reaction. To address this possibility, the initial rates of reaction using the most productive enzyme in terms of total turnover were compared, P411BM3-CIS T438S, and the less productive P411BM3-H2-A-10 and P411BM3-H2-4-D4 enzymes (FIG. 7). Differences in the total productivity (i.e., TTN) for each enzyme are mirrored in the initial rates of reaction, suggesting that specific amino acids proximal to the heme influence binding and orientation of the substrates to effect catalytic rate enhancement.

The key role of active site architecture in guiding reaction trajectory is further supported by the effects of amino acid substitutions on the reaction stereochemistry. Experiments shows that enzymes capable of producing an excess of either sulfimide enantiomer: e.g., P411BM3-CIS T438S gave an er of 74:26, while expanded active site variant P411BM3-H2-5-F10 exhibited the opposite selectivity, giving 29:71 (FIG. 8). Among the H2 mutants (which differ from P411BM3-CIS T438S by 3-5 amino acid substitutions, Table A), H2-5-F10 was alone in containing the I263A mutation, suggesting this mutation is relevant for enantiomeric inversion observed in the P411_(BM3)-H2-5-F10 variant. When the I263A mutation was placed in the P411BM3-CIS background, an even more pronounced inversion in selectivity was observed (er=18:82 for the P411_(BM3)-CIS I263A T438S variant, compared to 74:26 for P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S). This enzymatic system not only induces asymmetry in sulfimide products but also provides tunability in which selectivity can be switched with just a few mutations.

Previous studies of P450-catalyzed sulfoxidation as well as rhodium-catalyzed C—H amination suggest that the electronic properties of sulfide or alkyl acceptor substrates significantly impact reactivity. Thus, to better understand the mechanism of this new enzyme reaction, experiments were performed to establish how thioether electronic properties affected enzyme-catalyzed sulfimidation. A set of aryl sulfide substrates with substituents encompassing a range of electronic properties, from strongly donating to weakly withdrawing, were selected. As a first approximation of the effect of sulfide electronics, the total number of turnovers catalyzed by P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S was determined in the reactions of different sulfides with tosyl azide (Table C). In general, sulfides containing electron-donating substituents on the aryl sulfide ring were better substrates for sulfimidation. For example, the enzyme reaction containing 4-methoxythioanisole methoxythioanisole (7a) gave the highest levels of activity (300 TTN). In contrast, the electron-deficient p-aldehyde substrate (7e) gave only trace amounts of sulfimide product. Further, some azides that initially appeared entirely inactive gave small amounts of sulfimide products when reacted with 4-methoxythioanisole, underscoring the importance of sulfide electronics in this reaction (Table S4). The identity of substrates also exerted a modest influence on the enantioselectivity of sulfimidation. In particular, P411BM3-CIS T438S gave er values for substrates 8a-8d that ranged from 59:41 for 8c to 87:13 for 8d (Table S5, FIGS. S4-S6). While it is possible that some sulfides were poorer substrates due to the steric influence of the para substituent, the overall trend is strongly suggestive of electron induction to the aryl sulfide being a major contributor to activity. One notable aspect of these reactions is that significantly more sulfonamide (9) was produced when less reactive sulfides were used.

TABLE C Impact of Sulfide Substituents on Sulfimidation Activity with P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S.

entry R₁ in 7 R₂ in 7 TTN 8 TTN 9 a —OMe —H 300 270 b —Me —H 190 400 c —H —Me 100 390 d —H —H  30 500 e —CHO —H  <1^(a) 510 ^(a)Trace product observed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS).

Although the total turnover data suggest that sulfide electronics influence reactivity, this result could also be due to other factors, such as substrate-dependent enzyme inactivation. To assess the effect of sulfide substituents on reactivity more directly, the initial rates of reaction of tosyl azide with the sulfides 7a-7d in Table 2 were measured. The initial rates correlated well with the total turnover data presented above, with p-OMe showing the highest rate of reaction (FIG. 12). Given this correlation, more mechanistic information was obtained by fitting the data to a Hammett plot that correlates the observed rates with each substituent's Hammett parameter. There was a strong, linear relationship with a Hammett value of p=−4.0 (FIG. 2), which suggests that during the rate-limiting step there is a buildup of positive charge on the sulfide that is stabilized by electron-donating substituents. This observation is consistent with Hammett values obtained for the oxidation of thioanisoles in P450-catalyzed sulfoxidation reactions, though the magnitude of p for sulfimidation is significantly greater than for sulfoxidation (−4.0 versus −0.2). One possible explanation for this difference is that the presumed nitrenoid intermediate of this reaction (FIG. 1) is a weaker oxidant than compound I, making the nucleophilicity of sulfur an important contributor to the rate of nitrenoid transfer. The large difference in the magnitude of p could also indicates a change in mechanism relative to P450 sulfoxidation: whereas sulfimidation may occur via direct nucleophilic attack of the thioether on the nitrenoid intermediate.

As noted above, a greater proportion of sulfonamide side product was formed when less reactive sulfides were used. The varying amounts of this side product prompted an examination of how sulfonamide might be produced. Experiments were performed to test the possibility that azide is reduced by some additive in the reactions (i.e., glucose oxidase, catalase, NADPH, etc.) by simply omitting the P450 enzyme from the reactions (Table 7). No-enzyme controls yielded very little reduced sulfonamide product (more than 10-fold lower than with enzyme present). While these experiments showed that enzyme was likely involved in azide reduction, this still left several possibilities. Since P411_(BM3)'s heme domain is fused to a reductase, there was the possibility that azide reduction occurs via direct hydride transfer from the reductase, as has been observed for aldehyde reductions. Thus, a carbon monoxide-inhibited reactions was used to investigate this possibility, since CO binding to the heme iron should have no effect on the reductase domain. In the presence of CO, there was a significant decrease in the sulfonamide produced, suggesting that azide reduction occurs at the heme. Furthermore, only trace sulfonamide was observed when reactions were conducted in the presence of oxygen, further supporting the involvement of reduced heme in azide reduction. Since all the available evidence suggests that azide reduction and sulfimide formation both occur at the heme, the most parsimonious explanation is that both reactions stem from a common intermediate that can give rise to both sulfonamide and sulfimide products.

A proposed mechanism of sulfonamide and sulfimide formation begins with the iron(III) heme gaining an electron from NADPH via the flavin cofactors of the reductase domain (FIG. 3). Addition of azide substrate results in formation of a formal iron(IV) nitrenoid, which can either be reduced by subsequent electron transfer or “trapped” by sulfide to form sulfimide product. A second electron transfer followed by protonation of the nitrenoid is proposed to generate sulfonamide which restores the heme iron to its ferric state, and additional reductant is required to return to the catalytically active ferrous state (FIG. 3, unproductive pathway).

To test whether ferric heme is involved in the unproductive pathway, the change in the visible absorbance spectrum of the reduced holoenzyme P411_(BM3)-CIS I263A T438S was monitored upon addition of NADPH followed by azide. The Ser-ligated P411 proteins exhibit different absorbance properties in the ferric and ferrous states compared with their Cys-ligated counterparts, such that the ferric, ferrous, and CO-ferrous Soret bands are shifted from 418, 408, and 450 nm to 405, 422, and 411 nm, respectively (FIG. 12). When NADPH was added to a solution of enzyme under an anaerobic atmosphere, a reduction of the heme from the ferric to the ferrous state was observed. When a degassed solution of azide was added to the ferrous protein, an immediate shift back to the ferric state was observed, with concomitant production of sulfonamide, verified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). This observation suggests that the unproductive azide reduction pathway occurs readily in the absence of sulfide and that, when provided only with azide, the catalyst rests in the ferric state.

To determine the resting state of the P411 catalyst in sulfimidation, the above experiment were repeated in the presence of both sulfide and azide. Addition of sulfide to a solution of enzyme and NADPH results in no change in the Q or Soret bands, with the iron heme remaining in the ferrous state. However, addition of azide to this solution causes the iron heme to shift to the ferric state. After 10 min, peaks corresponding to the ferrous heme begin to grow until the ferrous heme becomes the dominant species at 30 min (FIG. 14). Both sulfonamide and sulfimide products are formed throughout the course of the reaction. The observations are consistent with the competing reaction pathways outlined in FIG. 3 and suggest that the catalyst rests as a mixture of ferric and ferrous hemes during sulfimidation. When the concentration of azide is high, as it is at the beginning of the reaction, the unproductive pathway is favored, and a ferric resting state dominates. As azide is consumed, both the ferric and ferrous resting states can be observed.

P450 monooxygenases are known to undergo an “oxidase uncoupling” side reaction in which compound I is reduced by two electrons to give water, which bears some similarity to the process of azide reduction observed here. One difference, however, is that only a single electron transfer is required to attain a reactive state in nitrene-transfer chemistry. This stands in contrast to P450 monooxygenase chemistry, where the generation of compound I from O₂ requires the transfer of two electrons. Thus, one explanation for the relatively high proportion of reduced azide in these reactions is that the electron-transfer machinery in P450_(BM3) is evolved to carry out two-electron reductions. In the case of nitrene transfer chemistry, reducing the ferric heme to the +2 state allows nitrenoid formation, but a second electron transfer would generate an unreactive iron(III) sulfonamide complex, as proposed for intramolecular C—H amination. Coupled with the fact that lower sulfide concentrations and less-reactive sulfides lead to increased azide reduction, these observations are consistent with the mechanism discussed above in which sulfimide formation competes with azide reduction. Since electron transfers from the reductase domain are quite rapid, relatively reactive sulfides can successfully compete with reduction to form sulfimide.

The mechanistic picture described above suggests that achieving higher levels of sulfide occupancy in the active site should favor sulfimide formation and inhibit azide reduction. This could be achieved with tighter binding of the sulfide acceptor substrate or by increasing the concentration of sulfide relative to azide. Accordingly, experiments were performed with excess sulfide or slow addition of azide to determine if increased sulfimide formation could be obtained relative to sulfonamide. Increasing the sulfide concentration decreased reduction of azide to sulfonamide and improved the ratio of sulfimide to sulfonamide, from 0.6 (with 0.5 equiv sulfide) to 1.8 (with 4 equiv sulfide) (FIG. 15, Table D). Slow azide addition slightly increased the TTN for sulfimide and decreased sulfonamide formation in a 2 h reaction (FIG. 16). That higher concentrations of sulfide substrate improve sulfimide production suggests that protein engineering can be used to improve the binding of sulfide acceptor substrates and could also produce strong gains in the desired activity. Indeed, the specific activities of the enzyme catalysts reported here compare favorably with enantioselective iron-based catalysts, which routinely require catalyst loadings of 10 mol %. Furthermore, engineering the holoenzyme or reductase domain to favor one electron transfers might improve the proportion of desired product relative to azide reduction, which could allow reaction with more challenging organic acceptor substrates.

TABLE D Productio of sulfimide 8a and sulfonamide 9 in the presence of varying levels of sulfide acceptor substrate. Sulfide Azide TTN 8a TTN 9 0.5 eq   1 eq 71 110 1 eq 1 eq 97 100 2 eq 1 eq 110 93 3 eq 1 eq 130 85 4 eq 1 eq 140 80

A C400S mutation (as described herein) for sulfimidation can be rationalized that the less electron-donating axial serine ligand in P411 enzymes likely makes the nitrenoid species a more potent oxidant. The impact of sulfide substituents on sulfimide formation is also reflected in the generation of sulfonamide side product, suggesting the nitrenoid undergoes rapid reduction and can be productively insert into reactive sulfides. Characterization of the redox state of the heme iron in the presence and absence of nitrene source and sulfide acceptor supports the proposal that nitrenoid “overreduction” competes with productive sulfimide formation and that the former is a two-electron process resulting in regeneration of ferric heme. Another interesting aspect of this enzyme reaction is the use of an aryl sulfonylazide nitrene source. The ability of the enzyme to accept larger aryl substrates may be beneficial for development of enantioselective intermolecular nitrene-transfer catalysts. Intermolecular nitrene transfer in the form of sulfimidation can now be added to the impressive array of cytochrome P450 enzymes.

General. Unless otherwise noted, all chemicals and reagents for chemical reactions were obtained from commercial suppliers (Sigma-Aldrich, VWR, Alfa Aesar) and used without further purification. Silica gel chromatography purifications were carried out using AMD Silica Gel 60, 230-400 mesh. 1H spectra were recorded on a Varian Inova 500 MHz instrument in CDCl3, and are referenced to the residual solvent peak. Synthetic reactions were monitored using thin layer chromatography (Merck 60 gel plates) using an UV-lamp for visualization.

Chromatography. Analytical high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was carried out using an Agilent 1200 series, and a Kromasil 100 C18 column (Peeke Scientific, 4.6×50 mm, 5 μm). Semi-preparative HPLC was performed using an Agilent XDB-C18 (9.4×250 mm, 5 μm). Analytical chiral HPLC was conducted using a supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) system with isopropanol and liquid CO₂ as the mobile phase. Chiralcel OB-H and OJ columns were used to separate sulfimide enantiomers (4.6×150 mm, 5 μM). Sulfides were all commercially available and sulfimide standards were prepared as reported. e.r. values determined by dividing the major peak area by the sum of the peak areas determined by SFC chromatography.

Cloning and site-directed mutagenesis. pET22b(+) was used as a cloning and expression vector for all enzymes described in this study. Site-directed mutagenesis on P411BM3-CIS T438S to generate P411BM3-CIS I263A T438S was performed using a modified QuickChange™ mutagenesis protocol. The PCR products were gel purified, digested with DpnI, and directly transformed into E. coli strain BL21 (DE3).

Determination of P450 concentration. Concentration of P450/P411 enzymes was accomplished by quantifying the amount of free hemin present in purified protein using the pyridine/hemochrome assay.

Protein expression and purification. Enzymes used in purified protein experiments were expressed in BL21(DE3) E. coli cultures transformed with plasmid encoding P450 or P411 variants. Expression and purification was performed as described elsewhere, except that the shake rate was lowered to 130 RPM during expression. Following expression, cells were pelleted and frozen at −20° C. For purification, frozen cells were resuspended in buffer A (20 mM tris, 20 mM imidazole, 100 mM NaCl, pH 7.5, 4 mL/g of cell wet weight) and disrupted by sonication (2×1 min, output control 5, 50% duty cycle; Sonicator 3000, Misonix, Inc.). To pellet insoluble material, lysates were centrifuged at 24,000×g for 0.5 h at 4° C. Proteins were expressed in a construct containing a 6×-His tag and were consequently purified using a nickel NTA column (5 mL HisTrap HP, GE Healthcare, Piscataway, N.J.) using an AKTAxpress purifier FPLC system (GE healthcare). P450 or P411 enzymes were then eluted on a linear gradient from 100% buffer A 0% buffer B (20 mM tris, 300 mM imidazole, 100 mM NaCl, pH 7.5) to 100% buffer B over 10 column volumes (P450/P411 enzymes elute at around 80 mM imidazole). Fractions containing P450 or P411 enzymes were pooled, concentrated, and subjected to three exchanges of phosphate buffer (0.1 M KPi pH 8.0) to remove excess salt and imidazole. Concentrated proteins were aliquoted, flash-frozen on powdered dry ice, and stored at −20° C. until later use.

Typical procedure for small-scale sulfimidation bioconversions under anaerobic conditions using purified enzymes. Small-scale reactions (400 μL) were conducted anaerobically in 2 mL crimp vials. A solution of aryl sulfide in DMSO or methanol (100 mM, 10 μL) was added to the reaction vial via syringe, followed by arylsulfonyl azide (100 mM, 10 μL, DMSO). Final concentrations of the reagents were typically: 2.5 mM aryl sulfide, 2.5 mM arylsulfonyl azide, 10 mM NADPH, 25 mM glucose, 5-20 μM P450. To the vials were then added acetonitrile (460 μL) and internal standard (1,3,5 trimethoxybenzene, 10 mM in 10% DMSO/90% acetonitrile, 1 mM final concentration). This mixture was then transferred to a microcentrifuge tube, and centrifuged at 17,000×g for 5 minutes. A portion (20 μL) of the supernatant was then analyzed by HPLC. Sulfimide formation was quantified by comparison of integrated peak areas of internal standard (1,3,5-trimethoxy benzene, 1 mM or 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene, 1 mM) and sulfimide at 220 nm to a calibration curve made using synthetically produced sulfimide and internal standard. Coefficients determined from standard curves were multiplied by a dilution factor in order to obtain sulfimide concentrations in the reaction mixture. Standard curves and response factors for products 8a-8d are presented in FIGS. 17-20. For chiral HPLC, the quenched reaction mixture was extracted twice with ethyl acetate (2×350 μL), dried under a light argon stream and resuspended in acetonitrile (100 μL).

Controls to confirm the enzymatic sulfimidation activity of variant P411_(BM3)CIS T438S. Small-scale reactions (400 μL total volume) were set up and worked up as described above. For the reaction containing hemin as catalyst, 10 μL of a hemin solution (1 mM in 50% DMSOH2O) was added to a final concentration of 25 TTNs were determined as described above and are presented in Table 7. CS denotes ‘complete system’ in which all components of the reactions as described above are present. Variations from the complete system are denoted with a “−X” where X is the component removed.

TABLE 7 Control experiments using substrate 7c yielding products 8c (sulfimide) and 9 (sulfonamide). CS = complete system. Condition TTN 8c TTN 9 P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S (CS) 90 300 CS-NADPH 1 2 CS + Na₂S₂O₄ + CO 2 40 CS boiled enzyme 1 53 CS aerobic 2.3 16 Hemin + Na₂S₂O₄ 0 42 CS-P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S 0 21

Synthesis of substrates and standards. All sulfimides presented in Table 8 were obtained form commercial sources (Sigma Aldrich, Alfa Aesar). Sulfmide standards were synthesized using known techniques.

TABLE 8 Impact of sulfide substituents on Sulfimidation activity with P411_(BM3)-CIS T438S.

entry R₁ in 7 R₂ in 7 TTN 8 TTN 9 a —OMe —H 300 270 b —Me —H 190 400 c —H —Me 100 390 d —H —H  30 500 e —CHO —H  <1^(a) 510 ^(a)Trace product observed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS).

₁H NMR (500 MHz; CDCl₃): δ=7.71 (d, J=8.0 Hz, 2H), 7.61 (d, J=8.9 Hz, 2H), 7.15 (d, J=8.35 Hz, 2H), 6.96 (d, J=8.9 Hz, 2H), 3.83 (s, 3H), 2.81 (s, 3H), 2.34 (s, 3H).

1H NMR (500 MHz; CDCl3): δ=7.72 (d, J=8.2 Hz, 2H), 7.57 (d, J=8.2 Hz, 2H), 7.28 (d, J=7.3 Hz, 2H), 7.16 (d, J=8.1 Hz, 2H), 2.82 (s, 3H), 2.39 (s, 3H), 2.35 (s, 3H)

1H NMR (500 MHz; CDCl3): δ=7.73 (d, J=8.0 Hz, 2H), 7.48-7.33 (m, 4H), 7.17 (d, J=8.1 Hz, 2H), 2.82 (s, 3H), 2.36 (s, 3H), 2.35 (s, 3H)

1H NMR (500 MHz; CDCl3): δ=7.72 (d, J=7.8 Hz, 2H), 7.55-7.46 (m, 5H), 7.16 (d, J=8.1 Hz, 2H), 2.83 (s, 3H), 2.34 (s, 3H)

The 1H NMR listings above for products 8a-8d matched those of characterized compounds.

Determination of initial rates. Four 2-ml vials were charged with a stir bar, 10× oxygen depletion system (40 μL), and a solution of enzyme prior to crimp sealing with a silicon septum. Once sealed, the headspace was flushed with argon for at least 10 minutes. Concurrently, a sealed 6-mL vial charged with glucose (250 mM, 400 μL), NADPH (20 mM, 400 μL), and KPi (pH=8.0, 0.1 M, 2.6 mL) was sparged for 10 minutes with argon. After degassing was complete, 340 μL of the reaction solution was transferred to the 2-mL vial via syringe. Sulfide (100 mM, 10 μL) was added to all four 2-mL vials followed quickly (less than 20 seconds) by tosyl azide (100 mM, 10 μL). The reactions were quenched at 1-2 minute intervals over 5-10 minutes by decapping and adding acetonitrile (460 μL). After 5 minutes of stirring, the vials were charged with internal standard and the reaction mixtures were transferred to 1.8 mL tubes, which were vortexed and centrifuged (14,000×g, 5 min). The supernatant was transferred to a vial for analysis by HPLC. Initial rates are plotted for individual enzymes referenced in FIG. 7, and for various substituted aryl sulfides in FIG. 12.

Visible absorbance spectroscopy and observation of resting states. To a semi-micro anaerobic cuvette, 8 μL of P411_(BM3)CIS I263A T438S (400 μM) was added. To obtain a spectrum of the ferric protein, 0.5 mL of degassed phosphate buffer was added to the cuvette and the visible spectrum was recorded from 650 to 400 nm. To obtain a spectrum of the ferrous protein, the cuvette was sealed with a cap equipped with rubber septa and the headspace of the cuvette was purged with a gentle stream of Ar for 3 min. A solution of NADPH (5 mM) was added to a 6 mL crimp vial and made anaerobic by sparging with Ar for 5 min. The NADPH solution (0.5 mL) was then added to the anaerobic cuvette containing protein. Visible spectra of the protein sample are recorded until a stable ferrous state is reached. Representative spectra of the Fe(III)- and Fe(II)-protein are shown below (FIG. 13).

To determine the resting state of the protein in the unproductive catalytic cycle, a degassed solution of tosyl azide (2 μL, 400 mM in DMSO) was added to a fully reduced sample of ferrous protein. The visible spectrum of the protein shifted to the ferric heme immediately and remained unchanged for 20 min. Addition of an aliquot of organic solvent of similar volume did not cause the observed change in iron oxidation state. At the end of 20 minutes (FIG. 13), the cuvette was uncapped and the reaction mixture was worked up following the general procedure for small scale reactions. HPLC of the resulting solution confirmed that a substantial amount of azide is reduced to the corresponding sulfonamide.

To determine the resting state of the protein during the sulfimidation reaction, a degassed solution of sulfide 7a (2 μL, 400 mM in DMSO) was added to the cuvette containing P411BM3CIS I263A T438S in the presence of NADPH. A visible absorbance spectrum of the mixture was recorded to ensure that the oxidation state of iron heme is unchanged. Next, a degassed solution of tosyl azide (2 μL, 400 mM in DMSO) was added to the cuvette. Visible absorbance spectra of the solution were recorded at 5, 7, 12, 18, 22, 25 and 30 min (FIG. 14). The appearance of ferrous heme is observed over time. HPLC confirmed formation of both sulfimide and sulfonamide.

Excess sulfide and azide slow addition experiments. To assess the impact of sulfide concentration on overall productivity of reaction, sulfide was added to reaction ranging from 0.5 eq to 4 eq relative to azide. 1 eq of azide denotes 1 mM in the small scale reactions described above. Results are plotted in FIG. S10 below as a ratio of the TTN for sulfimide vs. TTN for sulfonamide. Slow addition was accomplished by adding 1 μL of a 100 mM (100 nmol) tosyl azide solution (DMSO) at 15 minute intervals to a reaction set up as described previously with 0.4% catalyst loading, containing 2.5 mM 7a. Azide was added over 150 minutes until equimolar final concentrations of sulfide and azide were achieved. Results of the slow addition are presented in FIG. 16.

A number of embodiments of the disclosure have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for catalyzing the intermolecular insertion of nitrogen into organosulfur substrates to produce a product having a new S—N bond, the method comprising: providing a nitrene source, an organosulfur substrate and a heme enzymes or an engineered heme enzyme; and allowing the reaction to proceed for a time sufficient to form a product having a new S—N bond.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the nitrene source is an azide.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the azide has the general formula R¹—N₃, wherein R¹ is: (i) a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR², or —NR², wherein R² is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl; (ii) —SO₂R³, wherein R³ a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; (iii) —COR⁴ wherein R⁴ is a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl, —OR² or NR², wherein R² are any alkyl or aryl; or (iv) —P(O)(OR⁵)(OR⁶), wherein R⁵ and R⁶ are independently H, a substituted or unsubstituted aryl, a substitute or unsubstituted alkyl.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the azide has a structure selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the nitrene source is selected from the group consisting of:

wherein R¹ is any alkyl, aryl, —OR, NR², wherein R, R² and R³ are any alkyl, or aryl.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the S—N containing product is an aliphatic amine and the nitrene precursor is tosyl azide.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the product is generated through a nitrenoid intermediate.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the engineered heme enzyme is a cytochrome P450 enzyme or a variant thereof.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the heme enzyme is expressed in a bacterial, archaeal or fungal host organism.
 10. The method of claim 8, wherein the cytochrome P450 enzyme comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1 or a variant thereof.
 11. The method of claim 8, wherein the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a mutation at the axial position of the heme coordination site.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the mutation is an amino acid substitution of Cys with a member selected from the group consisting of Ala, Asp, Arg, Asn, Glu, Gln, Gly, His, He, Lys, Leu, Met, Phe, Pro, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr and Val at the axial position.
 13. The method of claim 8, wherein the P450 enzyme variant comprises at least one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or all thirteen of the following amino acid substitutions in SEQ ID NO:1: V78A, F87V, P142S, T175I, A184V, S226R, H236Q, E252G, A290V, L353V, I366V, T438S and E442K.
 14. The method of claim 8, wherein the cytochrome P450 enzyme variant comprises a T268A mutation, a T438S and/or a C400X mutation in SEQ ID NO: 1, wherein X is any amino acid other than Cys.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the product is a compound of Formula 1a:

wherein R¹ is a sulfoxide, a carbonyl or a phosphonate; wherein R² is H or any alkyl or aryl; and wherein R³ is H, O or an optionally substituted aryl group.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein R¹ is a sulfoxide of formula SO₂R⁵, wherein R⁵ any alkyl, any aryl, —OR⁶ or NR⁷, wherein R⁶ and R⁷ are any alkyl or any aryl.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein R¹ is a phosphonate of formula P(O)(OR⁸(OR⁹), wherein R⁸ and R⁹ are independently any aryl or any alkyl.
 18. A product made according to claim
 1. 